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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25678234">And Foes Bear Arms to the Doors of Death</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/HeadphonesChild/pseuds/HeadphonesChild'>HeadphonesChild</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Percy Jackson and the Olympians &amp; Related Fandoms - All Media Types</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Bisexual Leo Valdez, Book 4: The House of Hades (Heroes of Olympus), F/M, Gen, Hazel Levesque is a Good Sibling, Insecure Leo Valdez, Leo Needs a Hug, M/M, Multi, Nico di Angelo has Nightmares, One-Sided Nico di Angelo/Jason Grace, One-Sided Nico di Angelo/Percy Jackson, Polyamory, Post-The Mark of Athena (Heroes of Olympus), Rewrite, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, The House of Hades (Heroes of Olympus) Spoilers, The Mark of Athena (Heroes of Olympus) Spoilers</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-05-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 05:27:43</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>76,958</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25678234</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/HeadphonesChild/pseuds/HeadphonesChild</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Leo knew opening the fortune cookie that Nemesis gave him would create consequences. He just never imagined the severity of them. Falling into Tartarus wasn't exactly an equal exchange to saving his friends from possessed electronic puppets. Or, maybe it was. Both were certain death. He just didn't see why Frank had to get dragged into this. It wasn't fair to him. Leo wished he had been dropped into Tartarus by himself. Frank didn't deserve being stuck in literal hell with him. But he was going to do his absolute best to get Frank out of this alive, because he had something to return to. And if Leo got himself killed in the process, well, that was just fine. It's not like he had anybody waiting for him.</p><p>I do NOT own any of these characters, or most of the plot! Even some of the dialogue is ripped straight from the books. This takes place towards the end of Mark of Athena and throughout House of Hades, in an alternate version of what could of happened if the demigods were a bit smarter and didn't talk on the crumbling cavern floor.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson, Hazel Levesque/Frank Zhang, Hazel Levesque/Leo Valdez, Hazel Levesque/Leo Valdez/Frank Zhang, Jason Grace/Piper McLean, Leo Valdez/Frank Zhang, Nico di Angelo/Jason Grace, Nico di Angelo/Percy Jackson</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>145</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>193</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Leo</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>    Leo didn’t know when Frank had gone from “annoying man baby” to “almost friend” in his mind, but it was certainly before they almost died in Rome. Maybe it was because both their moms had died in fires, or maybe it was because even though Leo could burn up his life at a moments notice, Frank still trusted him, Leo couldn’t hate him nearly as much as he used to, even if he did have the girl of his dreams.<br/>
</p><p>Of course, there were moments where Frank did something that got on his nerves, but it was easy to forget when-<br/>
</p><p>“There it is! Frank, you’re amazing! I’m setting course.” Leo tapped at the controls of the Argo II, snickering under his breath when Frank hunched his shoulders and flushed.<br/>
</p><p>“I just read the name off the screen,” He brushed off. “Some Chinese tourist marked it on Google Maps.” Leo looked over his shoulder to smile at the rest of the crew.<br/>
</p><p>“He reads Chinese.”<br/>
</p><p>“Just a tiny bit.” Leo had a remark on the tip of his tongue when Hazel spoke up.<br/>
</p><p>“Guys, I hate to interrupt your admiration session, but you should hear this.” She was practically holding Nico up, keeping on his feet. He was paler than was probably healthy, and his eyes looked hollowed out. Leo felt his smile fall. He didn’t feel like he had a right to be joking around with this guy having been newly rescued, and Annabeth still missing. Leo turned wordlessly back to face the controls of the Argo II, opting to just listen.<br/>
</p><p>“Thank you… I’d given up hope.” Nico’s voice was weak and rough. Leo could barely hear it over the hum of the engine. There was a pause before Percy spoke, as if he was considering his next words very carefully.<br/>
</p><p>“You knew about the two camps all along. You could have told me who I was the first day I arrive at Camp Jupiter, but you didn’t.” His voice was soft, like he was trying to keep his tone from becoming scathing. Leo heard a thump from behind him, and he turned his head to see Nico slumped against the helm. He was looking down, almost ashamed. Hazel was glaring at Percy, and Leo couldn’t be more grateful he wasn’t at the receiving end of that look.<br/>
</p><p>“Percy, I’m sorry. I discovered Camp Jupiter last year. My dad led me there, though I wasn’t sure why. He told me the gods had kept the camps seperate for centuries and that I couldn’t tell anyone. The time wasn’t right. But he said it would be important for me to know-” Leo winced as Nico was cut off by his own fit of coughing. He imagined it was hard to talk this much after gods know how long of being trapped in a bronze jar, slowly suffocating. After a minute, Nico took in a shaky breath to continue. “I-I thought Dad meant because of Hazel… I’d need a safe place to take her. But now… I think he wanted me to know about both camps so I’d understand how important your quest was, and so I’d search for the Doors of Death.” From behind Leo, he could hear the unmistakable buzz of electricity and pop of sparks flying. He didn’t even have to look to know it was Jason.<br/>
</p><p>“Did you find the doors?” Percy asked.<br/>
</p><p>“I was a fool. I thought I could go anywhere in the Underworld, but I walked right into Gaea’s trap. I might as well have tried running from a black hole,” Nico answered. From next to Leo, Frank bit his lip and raised his hand awkwardly, as if he was in class.<br/>
</p><p>“Um… What kind of black hole are you talking about?” A moment passed, before Hazel spoke up.<br/>
</p><p>“Nico told me that the Doors of Death have two sides- one in the mortal world, one in the Underworld. The mortal side of the portal is in Greece. It’s heavily guarded by Gaea’s forces. That’s why they brought Nico back into the upper world. Then they transported him to Rome.” Leo felt something hit the back of his shin. He looked down to find a cheeseburger, the toppings spilling out. He looked over his shoulder to see Piper giving her cornucopia a deathgrip as she stared at Nico and Hazel, so it wasn’t difficult to deduce where the burger came from.<br/>
</p><p>“Where exactly in Greece is this doorway?” Piper asked. Nico took in a raspy breath.<br/>
“The House of Hades. It’s an underground temple in Epirus. I can mark it on a map, but- but the mortal side of the portal isn’t the problem. In the Underworld, the Doors of Death are in...in…” A beat.<br/>
</p><p>“Tartarus,” Percy completed. Leo felt a chill go up his spine. “The deepest part of the Underworld.”<br/>
</p><p>“They pulled me into the pit, Percy. The things I saw down there…” Suddenly, Leo is struck by the realization that Nico is just a kid, even younger than him.<br/>
</p><p>“No mortal has ever been to Tartarus,” Hazel jumped in. “At least, no one has ever gone in and returned alive. It’s the maximum-security prison of Hades, where the old Titans and the other enemies of the gods are bound. It’s where all monsters go when they die on earth. It’s… well, no one knows exactly what it’s like.”<br/>
</p><p>No one except Nico.<br/>
</p><p>“Now I can understand why Hades hasn’t been able to close the doors,” Nico continued. “Even the god of death, Thanatos himself, wouldn’t go near that place.” Leo couldn’t help mentally swearing at Hades for making his son go through something so obviously traumatizing. All because the gods themselves were too cowardly to go into Tartarus. What kind of dad was that? A godly one, apparently. Leo looked over his shoulder at Nico and Hazel. Hazel had given him back his Stygian Iron sword, and he was using it to steady himself.<br/>
</p><p>“So let me guess. We’ll have to go there.” Nico shook his head at Leo.<br/>
</p><p>“It’s impossible. I’m the son of Hades, and even I barely survived. Gaea’s forces overwhelmed me instantly. They’re so powerful down there… no demigod would stand a chance. I almost went insane.” Nico met Leo’s eyes, and Leo couldn’t help but wonder if maybe he had. He shook the thought off and turned back to the wheel.<br/>
</p><p>“Then we’ll sail for Epirus. We’ll just close the gates on this side,” Percy stated.<br/>
</p><p>“I wish it was that easy. The doors would have to be controlled on both sides to be closed. It’s like a double seal,” Nico explained. “Maybe, just maybe, all seven of you working together could defeat Gaea’s forces on the mortal side, at the House of Hades. But unless you had a team fighting simultaneously  on the Tartarus side, a team powerful enough to defeat a legion of monsters in their home territory-”<br/>
</p><p>“There has to be a way,” Jason interrupted. No one said anything. Leo wished he had an answer, he wished he could solve all their problems as easily as opening a fortune cookie. Why had he wasted his gift from Nemesis on the Archimedes sphere? He could have figured something out on his own. He was so lost in his thoughts he almost didn’t notice the large building the Argo II was flying towards until Percy spoke up.<br/>
</p><p>“We’ll figure out the Tartarus problem later. Is that the Emmanuel building?” Leo nodded, keeping his eyes fixed on the building as his fingers flew over the controls.<br/>
</p><p>“Bacchus said something about the parking lot in back? Well, there it is. What now?”<br/>
</p><p>“We have to get her out,” Percy said vaguely. Leo looked back, an eyebrow raised. He knew they needed to get Annabeth out. That was the whole reason they were here. That didn’t answer his question though. He didn’t even know if they were at the right place, or if they were here in time. Annabeth could very well be dead already.<br/>
</p><p>“Well, yeah. But, uh…” Percy turned to Coach Hedge, who had, at some point, picked up the burger Piper’s cornucopia spit out and started munching on it, which confirmed Leo’s suspicion that it was a veggie burger.<br/>
</p><p>“Bacchus said something about breaking through. Coach, you still have ammo for those ballistae?” Hedge grinned around the burger, the ketchup almost giving the illusion of blood.<br/>
</p><p>“I thought you’d never ask.”</p><p>----------</p><p>   They realised a little late that blasting a ballistae into a cavern that held one of their injured friends and a priceless artifact that could end the war between camps was probably a bad idea. Expensive Italian cars were raining down into the cavern, and a red Fiat 500 flew towards the Athena Parthenos. It seemed to have some sort of barrier of some sort to protect it, though, because the car bounced off an invisible force field and straight towards Annabeth. She rolled away, and the car instead hit what looked like a giant pair of Chinese handcuffs, rolling it down the chasm in the middle of the cavern floor. Debris from cars and the parking lot above rained down, riddling the floor with holes. Leo quickly flew the Argo II as close to the cavern floor as he could, hovering it above Annabeth to protect her from any more falling debris. She seemed shell shocked, unsurprisingly, and didn’t seem to even notice the Argo II Until Percy called out to her.<br/>
</p><p>“Annabeth!”<br/>
</p><p>“Here!”<br/>
</p><p>Leo was lowering the rope ladder, because Percy was too busy smiling at Annabeth over the railing. But Leo couldn’t blame him. He was grateful Annabeth was safe too... Well, as safe as it got for a demigod. Annabeth crawled slowly towards the rope ladder, and Percy started climbing down it before it was fully lowered. As soon as Percy was on the ground, Annabeth buried her face in Percy’s chest. Leo felt his chest pang slightly as he watched the couple over the railing.<br/>
</p><p>The seventh wheel…<br/>
</p><p>Leo shook his head, trying to force the thought out. If anyone deserved to be happy, it was Percy and Annabeth. This wasn’t the time for jealousy.<br/>
</p><p>The rest of the crew was starting down the rope ladder to greet Annabeth, but Percy held up his hand to stop them.<br/>
</p><p>“We’re coming up!” He yelled. “Annabeth’s injured, and the caver’s too unstable. Can’t hold much more weight.” Percy climbed up the rope ladder after Annabeth, probably to catch her if she fell, but she made it up the forty feet without much help. The group sat on the deck in a wonky circle, Annabeth and Percy side by side. Piper sat to Annabeth’s right, frowning deeply and offering ambrosia.<br/>
</p><p>“Your leg.” Leo hadn’t noticed it before, but Annabeth’s leg was indeed wrapped in Bubble Wrap, like a poor replacement for a cast. “Oh, Annabeth, what happened?” Annabeth took the ambrosia gently and nibbled it as she spoke. She seemed to have trouble speaking at first, but eventually she finished recounting her quest. The circle was quiet for a moment. Frank looked simultaneously embarrassed and proud to have been the muse behind Annabeth’s success.<br/>
</p><p>“Gods of Olympus. You did all that alone. With a broken ankle,” Jason said in awe. Annabeth gave a sheepish grin.<br/>
</p><p>“Well… some of it with a broken ankle.”<br/>

</p>
<p>Percy looked at Annabeth, grinning at her like she had hung the stars. “You made Arache weave her own trap? I knew you were good, but Holy Hera- Annabeth, you did it. Generations of Athena kids tried and failed. You found that Athena Parthenos!” As if on cue, everyone looked at the giant statue.<br/>
</p><p>“What do we do with her? She’s huge,” Frank said. Leo had to stifle a laugh.<br/>
</p><p>“We’ll have to take her with us to Greece. The statue is powerful. Something about it will help us stop the giants,” Annabeth said. From next to Frank, Hazel hummed.<br/>
</p><p>“The giants’ bane stands gold and pale. Won with pain from a woven jail.” She looked at Annabeth with an awestruck smile. “It was Arachne’s jail. You tricked her into weaving it.” Leo was still looking at the Athena Parthenos. He raised his hands in front of his face, making a finger frame around the statue as if to measure it.<br/>
</p><p>“Well, it might take some rearranging, but I think we can fit her through the bay doors in the stable. If she sticks out on the end, I might have to wrap a flag around her feet or something.” There was a beat of silence before Annabeth spoke up again.<br/>
</p><p>“What about you guys? What happened with the giants?” Leo felt Nico tense up next to him as Percy retold the story again. Leo tuned out, pulling his Archemides sphere out of his tool belt to keep his hands busy. He jolted his head up when he heard the chamber groan. He was quick to put the sphere away and peer over the railing of the Argo II to see the Athena Parthenos tilted to one side, the marble pedestal crumbling. Leo stood, cutting off someone, but he wasn’t paying attention to who. He was running to the helm as he vaguely registered Annabeth yelling “secure it!” He pressed a few buttons and grappling lines flew loosely around the statue. Leo cursed.<br/>
</p><p>“Zhang! Fly me down there!” A giant eagle was gripping Leo’s arms in only moments, taking him down to the statue. He transformed back to human immediately, helping Leo to tie the ropes around the statue. Jason had flown down in a matter of seconds, knotting and wrapping the ropes over the upper half of the bronze statue. The cavern groaned under their weight. As they hurried to secure the Athena Parthenos, stray webs and dust kicked up, tangling Leo’s boots. He didn’t notice, focused on protecting the Athena Parthenos.<br/>
</p><p>“Coach!” Leo finally called. “Flip the switch!” He hoped Hedge would understand. It felt like an eternity later, but fortunately the statue shot towards the Argo II. Unfortunately, Frank shot backwards towards the pit in the middle of the chamber floor at the same time. Leo instantly ran towards Frank, grabbing his hand. That only pulled Leo along as well.<br/>
</p><p>“Help them!” Leo looked back, seeing Hazel trying desperately to get everyone else’s attention. Nico was stumbling towards them while Hazel was struggling to climb down the rope ladder. The rest of the crew was focused on the statue, trying to get it on the ship.<br/>
They fell over the edge of the pit.<br/>
</p><p>Leo hadn’t meant to let go of Frank’s hand. It had happened completely by accident when they fell over the edge. He was glad that Frank managed to grab his ankle instead. Leo grasped blindly at the side of the pit until his hand came in contact with a ledge about fifteen feet down. Leo felt so completely drained, sapped of energy. Echoing in his head, he faintly heard, “I will not go to Tartarus alone, demigod.” He didn’t recognise the voice, but it sent chills up his back. Leo looked down at Frank, and saw a tangle of webs around his ankle. Realisation dawned on Leo. One of the webs must have been directly tied to Arachne.  ‘Great,’ thought Leo. ‘I wanted to be holding five hundred pounds with one arm over a who-knows-how deep pit of death. Exactly how I dreamed my day would go.’<br/>
</p><p>Leo was easily the weakest demigod of the crew. Repairing the ship didn’t take much strength, just a lot of elbow grease. So holding up Frank Zhang, who was easily twice his weight, and Arachne with only one arm was fruitless. Leo thought about shooting a fireball at Arachne just to relieve some weight, but what if he hit Frank? Or worse, his lifeline? Leo couldn’t risk it. Besides, the pit seemed to be draining his energy. Just the thought of shooting a fireball was exhausting.<br/>
</p><p>Arachne hissed. “I will not go to Tartarus alone! The gods will fall! Gaea will win, worthless half bloods!” Frank kicked his leg, but it didn’t do much to shut her up.<br/>
</p><p>Hazel peered her head over the mouth of the pit. “Leo! Frank!” Leo’s heart swelled. She called for him before her own boyfriend. ‘This isn’t the time for this,’ he swore at himself. Leo shot Hazel a pained grin, yelling above the angry shouts of the crazy spider lady. He still wasn’t sure wasn’t sure if she was actually yelling or if it was just in his mind.<br/>
</p><p>“There’s no way I can pull us both up. There’s a two-hundred pound spider attached to Frank. I dunno if I could pull us up if it was just Frank and I.” Hazel looked pained. Terrified.<br/>
</p><p>“Frank! Can you transform?” Hazel shouted down. Leo looked down to see Frank shaking his head, trying to kick the spider off. Leo wished he’d stop moving. It made holding onto the ledge even harder.<br/>
</p><p>“I tried. It’s like the pit is draining me.” Frank was silent for a moment. “I’m going to let go. Get rid of this spider. Then Leo can pull himself up.” Immediately, Leo shut him down.<br/>
</p><p>“No way man! You’re not going down there by yourself!” Leo looked up at Hazel and winked, trying to look as confident as possible, despite the fact that he was sweating and his face was white with effort. “We’ll meet you at the doors. We’re gonna close ‘em from the other side.” Hazel’s hand’s fluttered to her mouth and she shook her head quickly.<br/>
</p><p>“No, no! You can’t! You-“ Leo let go of the ledge, and suddenly Frank, Leo, and Arachne were free falling into the pit. The sudden force ripped the webbing from Frank’s ankle, and the spider plummeted twice as fast, hissing and screaming Greek curses. Frank gripped Leo’s arm, probably wanting to keep a grasp on the only other human in the black pit. Leo couldn’t see anything, but he could hear Frank’s breath right beside him. The pair hadn’t screamed at all when Leo let go. There was no use in that. This pit was deep; it was suspected to take nine days to reach the bottom by some Ancient Greek poet Leo couldn’t remember the name of. The only thing they’d succeed in doing by screaming is alerting monsters to their presence. From above, Leo could still hear Hazel and Nico yelling at the others for help, despite the fact that it was far too late. Leo moved his arm so he was gripping Frank’s wrist, and he gave it a slight squeeze.<br/>
</p><p>“Let’s kick some monster butt and get you back to Hazel.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Hazel</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Everything had happened so fast. In the end, Nico, Jason, and Piper had to drag her away from the edge of the pit. Piper wouldn’t leave her side as they walked back to the Argo II. Hazel got the feeling it was to keep her from running back to the pit and jumping in after Leo and Frank. The scariest part was that Hazel couldn’t say whether or not she would have done it.<br/>
</p><p>Jason and Percy stayed around the edge of Tartarus, Jason flying dangerously low over the pit to look for their missing crew members. Percy had dug through some of the rubble, looking for maybe some way to save them. They only came back more heartbroken than they left.<br/>
</p><p>Hazel didn’t remember loading the Athena Parthenos onto the Argo II. She only vaguely registered how grateful she was for Annabeth to be able to make some sense of Leo’s controls. Percy had brought her over a chair from the dining hall for her to sit on so she could help without injuring herself further. The statue just barely fit in the stables, but Hazel couldn’t help wondering if it was worth it.<br/>
</p><p>Everyone felt like Leo and Frank falling into Tartarus was their own fault. Jason said he should have been paying attention so that he could fly down and save them. Piper wished she had looked at Katoptris while they were flying, just in case it had shown her this. Annabeth regretted not having cut all the webs when she had the chance. Even Hedge was miserable. It was odd to see the saytar in tears, pulling at his goatee in a mixture of distress and anger. “I should have saved them! I should have blown up more stuff!” Percy sent him below decks to secure the statue for departure, but Hazel got the feeling that he was just trying to give Hedge an out.<br/>
</p><p>Hazel knew who was really to blame.<br/>
</p><p>Nemesis. Or the eidolons. Maybe both. They were the reason Leo had to open that cursed fortune cookie, the one that cost something precious. It saved her and Frank in the Pantheon, but for what?<br/>
</p><p>Her eyes landed on the Archemides scrolls Leo had placed on the helm. He claimed they were too important to put in his toolbelt. Hazel felt her eyes well up again, and she tore her eyes away.<br/>
</p><p>“It’s my fault.” Hazel hadn’t even realised she felt that way until she had said it. But the more she thought about it, the more it made sense. She couldn’t help feeling like Frank and Leo falling into Tartarus was her fault, some sort of cosmic punishment from the gods for existing. Being swallowed up by the ground? It was far too similar to how her mother had died. Everyone she got close to, everyone she loved, she lost. Her mom, Nico, Sammy, Leo and Frank...<br/>
</p><p>Piper was quick to shake her head. “No. No, this is Gaea’s fault. It had nothing to do with you.” Hazel didn’t respond, just numbly allowed Piper to grab her hand.<br/>
</p><p>Nico shakily grabbed her other. “Hazel… they’re not dead. If they were, I could feel it.” Hazel looked over to Nico. She already had assumed Leo and Frank were still alive, but hearing Nico say it was so much more reassuring.<br/>
</p><p>“How can you be sure?” Jason interrupted. It was odd. He had always been civil to Nico, but now his tone had an edge to it. Hazel supposed it made sense. Leo was his best friend. “If that pit really did lead all the way to Tartarus, how could you sense them so far away?” Hazel let out a shaky breath and tried her best to give Jason a reassuring smile. She doubted it came off that way.<br/>
</p><p>“We… We can’t be one hundred percent sure. But I think Nico is right. Leo and Frank are still alive.” The ‘for now’ was unspoken amongst everyone. Sparks flew off of Jason’s arms as he pounded his hand against the rail of the Argo II. The electricity in the air made the hair on the back of Hazel nack stand on end.<br/>

</p>
<p>“I should have been there! I could have flown down and saved them!” Jason said again. Piper dropped Hazel’s hand and rushed to her boyfriend, placing a reassuring hand on his back.<br/>
</p><p>“It’s not your fault. You were trying to save the statue.”<br/>
</p><p>“She’s right…” Nico murmured. “If you had tried, then you couldn’t have flown into it without being pulled down. When you were searching earlier, you were coming dangerously close to being sucked in. I’m the only one who has actually been into Tartarus. It’s impossible to describe how powerful that place is. I… I never stood a chance.”<br/>
</p><p>“Then Leo and Frank don’t stand a chance either?” Percy asked. Nico grimaced slightly.<br/>
</p><p>“We’ll just have to wait and see…” He answered noncommittally.<br/>
</p><p>“Well, what are we supposed to do?” Percy asked. As Nico was about to respond, Hazel looked up and spoke.<br/>
</p><p>“We go to Greece. Close the doors from this side.” Her eyes hurt from holding back tears, and her voice sounded watery, even to her own ears.<br/>
</p><p>“The Doors of Death? But you told us it’s guarded by Gaea’s most powerful forces. How could two demigods possibly-” Percy argued.<br/>
</p><p>“I don’t know,” She admitted, her voice breaking. “But Leo told me he’d meet us there. He’s going to try and close the doors from the other side.”<br/>
</p><p>“If we can survive the House of Hades, fight our way through Gaea’s forces, then maybe we can work together with Leo and Frank to seal the Doors of Death from both sides,” Nico continued.<br/>
</p><p>“And get Leo and Frank back safely?” Jason asked.<br/>
</p><p>“Maybe.” Nico took a deep breath. “I don’t know how they’ll manage, but they’ll have to. We just have to believe in them.”<br/>
</p><p>“It won’t be easy,” Piper said. “Gaea will throw everything she’s got at us to keep us from reaching Epirus.”<br/>
</p><p>“What else is new?” Jason sighed, leaning against Piper. Piper wrapped an arm around him.<br/>
</p><p>“We’ve got no choice,” Hazel said desperately. Percy nodded in agreement.<br/>
</p><p>“We have to seal the Doors of Death before we can stop the giants from raising Gaea. Otherwise her armies will never die. And we’ve got to hurry. The Romans are in New York. Soon, they’ll be marching on Camp Half-Blood.”<br/>
</p><p>“We’ve got one month at best,” Jason pointed out. “Ephialets said Gaea would awaken in exactly one month.”<br/>
</p><p>“We can do it.” It took Hazel a moment to register the small voice before she recognised it at Annabeth. She felt guilty. She had almost forgotten Annabeth was on the ship. She had been so quiet, so focused on teaching herself Leo’s controls at the helm and so far away from the discussion. Hazel turned to look at her, and saw Annabeth was holding the Archemides scrolls. Hazel felt an urge to lunge at Annabeth and take them from her. They were Leo’s, he had sacrificed so much to get them. But Hazel didn’t want to risk damaging them. Without looking up from the scroll, Annabeth spoke again, “There’s fantastic ideas here, ways I could upgrade the ship. I could do more if I had the Sphere or my laptop, and I’m not naturally handy, but there’s a good amount of ancient weaponry I can see being useful that I could probably manage to build if I had a little help.” She carefully rolled up the scroll, placing it back with the others, and Hazel felt her body untense. Festus the dragon head creaked and blew out a stream of fire. Percy was the first to respond.<br/>
</p><p>“We’d be glad to help.” Jason nodded along with Percy and approached her, placing a gentle hand on Annabeth’s shoulder. He managed a weak smile.<br/>
</p><p>“Sounds like a plan. You wanna set course?” Annabeth nodded defiantly, turning back to the helm.<br/>
</p><p>“Absolutely. Piper, can you help me out with Festus?” Annabeth’s fingers flew over the controls just as easily as Leo’s did, and it made Hazel feel nauseous. She excused herself to her room below deck, but nobody seemed to notice. </p><p>----------</p><p>Hazel didn’t resurface until after the Argo II had been flying out of Rome for a few days. They kept to the air, not chancing getting too close to the ground, and not wanting to sail since they had to keep close to the coastline. Piper had come knocking at her door a few times, asking her to come out and telling her that it wasn’t doing her any good to stay cooped up in her room. Nico brought her some food after every meal. It wasn’t until the ship’s alarm bells sounded that she was shocked out of her heartbreak. By the time she reached the deck, calvary sword in hand, demigods were scrambling around, yelling orders at each other.<br/>
</p><p>“Hard to port!” Nico yelled from the crows nest of the foremast. At the helm, Annabeth was hobbling back and forth on a partially healed ankle. She yanked the wheel, the aerial oars slashing through the clouds easily and making the ship tilt dangerously. Hazel looked over the rail, still gripping her sword, and vaguely questioned ‘why is the moon coming at us?’ as a large shape hurled towards the ship. Not a second too soon, she hit the deck, the rock blowing just over her. She felt the air shift around her, moving her hair out of her face.<br/>
</p><p>CRACK!<br/>
</p><p>The rock, which Hazel could see now was roughly the size of a pick up truck, had smashed straight through the foremast and continued on through the fog, disappearing into the night. Nico swore loudly as he came crashing down with the foremast and the sails, canvas falling over him.<br/>
</p><p>“Nico!” She yelled, running over to him as Annabeth attempted to level out the boat. Nico kicked the sails off him, an annoyed grimace on his face.<br/>
</p><p>“I’m fine.” She helped him up, and they stumbled towards the bow together. Hazel peeked over the railing again, much more carefully this time. The dense fog parted to reveal a mountain, and standing at the summit was a mountain god- one of the numina montanum, Jason had called them. Piper had called them ourae. Hazel called them annoying.<br/>
</p><p>She hadn’t been part of any of the battles with them, but she had seen the numina from her cabin window while she sulked. She knew they had been dealing with them since they started flying over the mountains.<br/>
</p><p>Like the other ones Hazel had seen from her cabin window, this one wore a simple tunic, and had skin that was comparable to basalt. He was as tall as a mountain himself, and as the Argo II continued to approach, he bellowed something that Hazel couldn’t understand, but she got the feeling it wasn’t welcoming. This was only solidified as another chunk of rock was flung at them.<br/>
</p><p>The mountain disappeared into the fog behind them, but the numina bellowed again, and a chorus of other numina answered, their voices echoing through the valleys.<br/>
</p><p>From the helm, Annabeth scowled as she grabbed a Nintendo Wii controller. “Stupid ourae. We don’t have time to replace the mast!” She spun the controller in a circle, and a trap door opened in the deck. A Celestial bronze cannon rose, and fired green fire, Greek fire, at the numina. The numina bellowed in what sounded to be pain, but only seconds later, another rock whistled towards them.<br/>
</p><p>“Get us out of here!” Nico yelled.<br/>
</p><p>“What do you think I’m doing?” Annabeth yelled back. She gave the wheel a sharp turn, and the ship began retreating northwest, as they had been for the past two days.<br/>
</p><p>Hazel was white-knuckling the railing, and didn’t relax until the mountains were out of sight. The fog cleared, and she could clearly see the sun-lit Italian countryside. The green hills and gold fields were so similar to those in Northern California, almost to the point that she could imagine that she was sailing back home. </p><p>The thought weighed on her chest.<br/>
</p><p>Camp Jupiter had only been her home for nine months, since Nico brought her back to life, but she missed it more than New Orleans, and definitely more than Alaska.<br/>
</p><p>She missed the Fifth Cohort. She missed dinners in the mess hall. Most of all, she missed wandering New Rome side by side with Frank.<br/>
</p><p>More than Camp Jupiter, she missed Frank. She couldn’t imagine returning without him.<br/>
</p><p>Annabeth punched buttons on the ship’s console while Nico plucked splinters out of his arms. “Should we wake the others?” Nico asked, without looking up.<br/>
</p><p>“No. They need rest. They had the night shift last night. We’ll have to figure out another way on our own,” Annabeth answered, equally distracted. Hazel felt guilt claw at her throat. Technically speaking, Hazel was on shift this morning. She had been shirking her shifts in favour of staying cooped in her cabin. No one pressured her to take her shifts, everyone knew she took Frank’s and Leo’s loss the hardest. But this acted as a wakeup call. What if she hadn’t decided to come help, and Annabeth got hurt again? Or Nico? Putting other people in danger because she missed Leo and Frank was no way to deal with this.<br/>
</p><p>“Another way…” Hazel muttered. “Do you see one?” She looked over Annabeth’s shoulder at the helm. On the monitor glowed a map of Italy. The Apennine Mountains ran down the center of the boot shaped country. There was a green dot blinking on the west of the range, representing the Argo II, a few hundred miles north of Rome. Looking at the map, their path should have been simple. They needed to get to Epirus in Greece and find the temple called the House of Hades. All they needed to do was travel straight east- over the Apennines and across the Adriatic Sea. It hadn’t worked out that way. Every time they tried to cross the spine of Italy, the numina attacked.<br/>
</p><p>For the past two days, they’d done nothing but skirt north, hoping to find a safe pass, but with no luck. The mountain gods were sons of Gaea’s resident Worst Goddess. That made them very determined enemies of the Argo II. The ship couldn’t fly high enough to avoid their attacks; even with all the defenses in place, there was no way they could make it across the range without being smashed to bits.<br/>
</p><p>“I’m sorry,” Hazel said softly. “It’s my fault.” Nico gave her a pointed look.<br/>
</p><p>“Mine too. The ourae can sense us,” Nico added, despite knowing full well that’s not what Hazel had meant. Even so, Hazel gave him a gentle, grateful smile. She had gotten enough of the other demigods trying to get her to talk about her feelings since… She didn’t need Annabeth to join in on it.<br/>
</p><p>Annabeth turned to Nico, looking him over, almost like she was sizing him up. Sure, since they’d rescued him from the giants, he’d started to regain his strength, but he was hardly a threat. He was still painfully thin, with his tee shirt and jeans hanging off his frame. His eyes were still too sunken, and his skin was too pale. He could barely use his sword, and he didn’t have enough strength to shadow travel. “Earth spirits don’t like children of the Underworld, that’s true. But I think they could sense the ship anyways. We’re carrying the Athena Parthenos. It’s like a magical beacon,” Annabeth hummed.<br/>
</p><p>Hazel felt her anger flare at the mention of the massive statue taking up most of the stables. So much had been sacrificed for that thing. They had barely managed to save it from the cavern under Rome at the exchange of two of their crewmates, and now they didn’t know what to do with it. The only thing it seemed to be good for was alerting monsters to their presence. Hazel mentally cursed Athena, even though she knew, rationally, she had nothing to do with Leo and Frank falling into Tartarus.<br/>
</p><p>“So, crossing the mountains is out,” Hazel said, looking at the map over Annabeth’s shoulder. Annabeth blinked and turned back around to the monitor. “But they go a long way in either direction.”<br/>
</p><p>“We could go by sea. Percy could speed up the travel,” Nico suggested. “Go around the southern tip of Italy.” Annabeth shook her head, tracing her finger along the map.<br/>
</p><p>“Even with Percy helping, that’s a long way. And a lot of energy for him to exert. Plus, the ourae have done a lot of damage to the hull of the Argo II, so it probably wouldn’t even float without major repairs, and without Leo…”<br/>
</p><p>The name hung in the air. Leo Valdez. No one had ever realised just how important he was until he was gone. He wasn’t as powerful as Percy or Jason, or as smart as Annabeth, but he kept morale up. Without him, the ship was so different.<br/>
</p><p>Hazel had felt so powerless, seeing Leo and Frank fall into Tartarus. She knew they were both still alive, but it didn’t change the emptiness she felt in her heart. The same emptiness as when Sammy took the cursed diamond and she lost him forever. She couldn’t lose them too. Not after all this.<br/>
</p><p>She took a shaky breath. “What… What about continuing north?” She asked. “There has to be a break in the mountains, or something.” Annabeth continued to stare at the monitor, spinning the ring she had on her necklace with contemplation.<br/>
</p><p>“I don’t know. I don’t see any good passes to the north. But I like that idea better than backtracking south. I’d like to leave Rome as far behind as possible.” No one argued with her. Rome hadn’t been a great experience for anyone.<br/>
</p><p>“Whatever we do,” Nico said, “We have to hurry. Every day Leo and Frank are in Tartarus…” He didn’t need to finish. They had to hope Leo and Frank would survive long enough to find the Doors of Death. Then, assuming the Argo II could reach the House of Hades, they might be able to open the doors on the mortal side, save their friends, and seal the entrance, stopping Gaea’s forces from being reincarnated in the mortal world over and over again in the process. There was nothing that could go wrong with that plan.<br/>
</p><p>Nico scowled over the railing, looking like he wanted to burn a hole in the Italian countryside below them. “Maybe we should wake the others up. This decision affects us all.”<br/>
</p><p>“No. We can find a solution,” Hazel claimed. She wasn’t sure why she felt so strongly about it, but she felt like waking everyone up would only lead to a fight. Ever since leaving Rome, the crew had started to lose it’s cohesion. No one had realised how important Leo and Frank were to the crew until they lost them. They were the peacemakers. Jason clearly felt lost without his best friend, and had taken to closing himself off from everyone, even Piper. Percy became snappish at Jason, blaming him for their fall. Hazel didn’t think she could handle anymore of it.<br/>
</p><p>She wanted to make Leo and Frank proud of her. Show that she could save them even when she missed them. Because she missed them. “We need some creative thinking,” She continued. ‘If Leo were here, he’d know what to do,’ she thought. “Another way to cross those mountains, or a way to hide ourselves from the numina.”<br/>
</p><p>“If I was on my own, I could shadow-travel. But that won’t work for an entire ship.” Hazel gave Nico a half-hearted glare, and he sighed. “And honestly, I’m not sure I have the strength to even transport myself anymore.”<br/>
</p><p>“I could maybe rig some kind of camouflage,” Annabeth said. “Leo left some blueprints for a smoke screen to hide the ship in the clouds. But I have no idea how long that would take me.”<br/>
</p><p>Hazel looked down at the rolling fields, thinking of what was underneath it- the realm of her father, of Pluto. She had only ever met him once, and she hadn’t realised who he was then. She certainly never expected help from him, not when she was alive the first time, not during her time wandering the Underworld as a spirit, not since Nico had brought her back to the world of the living. Thanatos, the god of death, had suggested that maybe Pluto had been doing Hazel a favour by ignoring her. That if he took notice of her, he’d have to return her to the land of the dead. After all, she wasn’t supposed to be alive. Which meant, logically, calling on her father would be a very bad idea. And yet…<br/>
</p><p>Please Dad, she prayed. I have to find a way to your temple in Greece- The House of Hades. If you’re down there, show me what to do.<br/>
</p><p>When she opened her eyes, a flicker of movement agt the edge of the horizon caught her eye. Something small and beige, leaving behind a vapor trail like a plane. She didn’t want to allow herself to hope, but there was nothing else it could be… “Arion.” Annabeth and Nico looked at Hazel, confusion clear in their eyes. Hazel felt her cheeks grow warm with embarrassment. Of course, she was with the only two who didn’t know about her horse. “He’s a horse. Like, the immortal one? We haven’t seen him since Kansas.” About a mile north, the small beige dot circled a hill and stopped at the summit. He was difficult to make out, but when he whinnied, the sound carried all the way to the Argo II. Hazel had no doubt; it was Arion. “We have to meet him,” Hazel insisted. “He’s here to help.” Annabeth nodded, repositioning the steering of the ship so they would fly right over Arion.<br/>
</p><p>“Alright. We aren’t landing, though. We can’t risk anything with Gaea.” Hazel nodded.<br/>
</p><p>“Just get me close, I’ll use the rope ladder. I think Arion wants to tell me something.” Hazel couldn’t remember the last time she had felt her heart pound so hard.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Hazel</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hazel hadn’t felt this happy since Rome. She’d go so far as to say that she had never felt this happy in her life, except for maybe when Frank kissed her the first time on the night of the victory feast at Camp Jupiter, but she didn’t want to think about that right now.</p><p>As soon as she reached the ground, she ran to Arion and threw her arms around him. He smelled like sea salt and apples. “Where have you been? I’ve missed you!”
Arion nickered impatiently, and Hazel wished she could speak Horse like Percy or even had him here to translate. Even so, she got the general idea. No time for sentiment, girl! Come on! 
</p>
<p>“You want me to go with you?” Arion bobbed his head as if to nod, his brown eyes gleaming with urgency. Hazel still couldn’t believe that he was actually here. Sure, he could run across any surface, even the sea wasn’t a problem for him, but she figured he wouldn’t follow them into the ancient lands. It was far too dangerous for any demigods and their allies. But here he was. He wouldn’t have come unless Hazel was in dire need. And he seemed agitated, ready to bolt at a moment's notice… anything that could make Arion skittish should have terrified her. Instead, Hazel felt elated, lighter than she had felt in days. She was so tired of being seasick and airsick and heartsick. She felt useless on the Argo II, unable to do anything but blame herself for Leo and Frank falling into Tartarus. She was glad to be back on solid ground, even if it was Gaea’s domain. It was her dad’s as well. It was her’s. She was ready to ride. 
</p>
<p>“Hazel!” Nico called from over the railing of the ship. His voice barely carried the one hundred feet to the ground, but Hazel heard him all the same. Her senses seemed sharper on the ground. “What’s going on?” 
</p>
<p>“It’s fine!” She assured, holding up one hand. With the other, she crouched and summoned a gold nugget from the ground. A small bit of pride swelled in her chest. She was getting better at controlling her power. Precious stones barely showed up around her on accident anymore, and she was able to focus her power much better now. Pulling up gold was easy now, and barely took any thought. She held the gold out the Arion, and he took a huge bite of it like an apple. She smiled up to the Argo II. “Arion wants to take me somewhere.” Hazel saw Nico’s face shift, likely into a frown, but she was too far away to be certain. 
</p>
<p>“Please tell me he’s not taking you into that,” He said, pointing north. Hazel turned to where Nico was pointing. She had been so focused on Arion, she hadn’t noticed that, roughly a mile away, a dense storm had gathered over some old stone ruins on the top of a hill. In the center of the storm stood an inky black funnel cloud. Hazel swallowed, but her mouth was too dry. She looked at Arion. 
</p>
<p>“You want me to go there?” Arion whinnied and pawed at the ground, as if to say, Uh duh! Hazel felt her heart sink, but she looked back at the storm. She had asked for help, Was this her dad’s answer? She hoped so, but she sensed something other than Pluto in that storm… something dark, powerful, and not necessarily friendly. Still… this was her chance to help her friends- to help Leo and Frank. She tightened the straps of the Imperial gold cavalry sword hanging at her waist and climbed onto Arion’s back. She looked back up at the Argo II with what she hoped was a reassuring smile. “I’ll be okay! Stay put and wait for me!”
</p>
<p>“Wait for how long?” Nico asked. “What if you don’t come back?” Hazel could sense the anxiety coming from him from one hundred feet below. The worry that Hazel was going to disappear like Bianca did, and that Nico couldn’t do anything about it. 
</p>
<p>“Don’t worry, I will,” she promised. She spurred Arion on, and they shot across the countryside, straight for the jet-black tornado. The storm swallowed the hill in a swirling cone of black vapor. Arion charged straight into it.
</p>
<p>At the summit, Hazel felt like she was in another world. The sky around her had lost its colour, becoming a misty grey. The walls of the tempest were an unsettling, murky black. The ruins were bleached a bright white, such a stark comparison to everything else that they almost seemed to glow. Even Arion’s coat, which was normally a glossy, caramel brown had turned to a dark shade of ash. 
</p>
<p>In the eye of the swirling storm, the air was still. Her arms tingled coolly, and her hair stood on end, similarly to how it did when Jason would accidentally send sparks flying. In front of her was the crumbling archway that led to the moss covered walls of some sort of enclosure. Hazel couldn’t see much else through the gloom, but she felt a presence pull at her. She imagined the feeling was similar to how the metals underground must feel whenever she summoned them to the surface. 
</p>
<p>Arion started forward, towards the presence, but Hazel hesitated. She pulled back on Arion slightly, stilling him, and he clopped impatiently. The ground crackled under his hooves. The sound made Hazel sick to her stomach. Wherever Arion stepped, the ground became crusted in a layer of frost, despite the distinct lack of chill. She remembered the Hubbard Glacier in Alaska, her first quest with Frank. How the surface had cracked under their feet and swallowed Percy up. She remembered the floor of the horrible cavern in Rome crumbling to dust, taking Frank and Leo with it. 
</p>
<p>Hazel was half tempted to stay where she was, in hopes that this hilltop would swallow her up too, would take her to Frank and Leo, no matter how deadly their quest. Instead, she leaned forwards slightly on Arion, cueing him forward. 
</p>
<p>“Let’s go, then, boy.” Hazel’s voice was swallowed up by the clouds around them, making her sound muffled, as though she were speaking through a door. 
Arion trotted through the archway. Ruined walls bordered a square courtyard about the size of a tennis court. Three other gateways, one in the middle of each wall, lead north, east, and west. In the center of the yard, two cobblestone paths intersected, making a cross. Mist hung in the air- hazy shreds of white that coiled and undulated as if they were alive. 
</p>
<p>Hazel furrowed her brow as she started at the clouds of white. Not mist, she realised. The Mist. 
</p>
<p>The Mist, the supernatural veil that obscured the world of myth from the sight of mortals. It could deceive humans, even demigods, into perceiving  monsters as mortals, or gods as people. All her life, hazel had heard about the Mist, about what it could do, but she had never imagined it as actual smoke.
</p>
<p>Yet, as she watched it curl around Arion’s legs, and swirl in front of her, the hair stood up straight on her neck. Hazel had no doubt in her mind- this white stuff was pure magic. 
</p>
<p>In the distance, a dog howled. It was impossible to tell how far away it was, as the storm swallowed up the sound, and even harder to see it. Arion reared nervously, which Hazel thought odd. She knew he was on edge, but he wasn’t usually scared of anything. “It’s okay,” Hazel assured, stroking his neck. “We’re in this together. I’m going to get down, all right?” 
</p>
<p>She slid off his back. Arion instantly turned and ran the way they had come. 
</p>
<p>“Arion, wait-” But he had already disappeared. Hazel puffed her cheeks out in agitation. So much for being in this together. 
</p>
<p>Another howl cut through the air. Despite the difficulties in discerning the distance, Hazel was certain it was closer. Hazel stepped towards the center of the courtyard. The Mist clung to her stubbornly, and chilled her skin where it touched. 
</p>
<p>“Hello?” she called nervously.
</p>
<p>“Hello,” a voice answered. Like an echo. 
</p>
<p>At the northern gates, a pale silhouette appeared of a woman. No… she was standing at the eastern entrance. No, the western… Three images of the same woman moved in unison towards Hazel, coming together at the center of the ruins. She was blurred, like a figure moving in a photograph, and she was made up of the Mist. She was followed by two small wisps of smoke which darted around her feet and between her legs like cats. 
</p>
<p>When her three wispy echoes met in the center, she merged into one form, solidifying into the image of a young woman with her hair set in a high, Ancient Greek style ponytail, and a dark green sleeveless gown. The dress seemed to move around her, even when she was still, as if it was ink spilling down her shoulders. She looked like she could be no more than twenty, but that did nothing to ease Hazel’s anxiety. Looks meant nothing. 
</p>
<p>“Hazel Levesque…” The woman’s voice still seemed to echo from around the courtyard, instead of coming directly from her. 
She was beautiful, in a terrifying sort of way. Once, when Hazel had been alive the first time, she had been forced to attend the wake of a dead classmate in New Orleans. She remembered the lifeless body in the open casket, her pale face made up pretty, as if she was only resting. As if nobody wanted to accept she was dead. That’s what this woman reminded her of.
</p>
<p>Except that her eyes were open- and completely black. The woman tilted her head, and she blurred into three separate images again. Hazel’s fingers twitched towards her sword. 
</p>
<p>“Who are you?” Hazel asked. “I mean… Which goddess?” She was sure of that much, that this woman was a goddess. She radiated power. Everything around them- the swirling Mist, the glow of the ruins, the dark storm- it seemed to be coming directly from her. 
</p>
<p>Her lips quirked up slightly, and she blurred at the movement. “Ah. Let me give you some light.” 
</p>
<p>She raised her hands, and she was suddenly holding two old fashioned reed torches that Hazel hadn’t seen since New Rome. They sputtered with fire, and the Mist receded to the edge of the courtyard, as if afraid of her. At her feet, the wispy smoke took on solid forms, one of a black Labrador, and the other of grey rodent. It almost looked like a weasel. 
</p>
<p>“I am Hecate,” she said. Her smile was serene, but intimidating. “Goddess of Magic. We have much to discuss, if you are to live through tonight.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Hazel</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hazel wanted to run, but her feet wouldn’t move. On either side of the crossroads, there were two metal torch stands. They erupted from the ground like corn stalks, the dark metal a stark contrast to the white mist all around. Hecate fixed her torches in them and walked a slow circle around Hazel, studying as if she were a science experiment. It made her skin crawl. The black dog and weasel followed her, weaving between her legs. She blurred as she walked.</p><p>“You are like your mother,” she hummed. Hazel felt her throat grow tight. 
</p><p>“You knew her?” Hecate let out a little puff through her nose, like she was laughing.
</p><p>“Of course. Marie was a fortune-teller. She dealt in charms and curses and gris-gris. I am the goddess of magic.” Hecate’s eyes tugged at Hazel, as if trying to remove her soul from her very body. Back in New Orleans, Hazel had been tormented by the kids at St. Agnes School simply because of her mother. They called Marie Levesque a witch. The nuns muttered that she was trading with the Devil.
</p><p>If the nuns were scared of my mom, Hazel wondered, what would they make of this goddess?
</p><p>“Many fear me,” the goddess said, as if reading her thoughts. Her lips were quirked up. “But magic is neither good nor evil. It is a tool, like a knife. Is a knife evil? Only if the wielder is evil.” 
</p><p>“My-My mother… She didn’t really believe in magic,” Hazel insisted. “Not really. She was just faking it, for the money.” 
</p><p>The weasel at Hecate’s feet chittered angrily and bared its teeth. A squeak came from the weasel, and Hazel might have laughed in other circumstances. How often do you hear a weasel fart? Hazel didn’t find it very amusing right now. The rodent’s eyes were almost glowing through the mist. 
</p><p>Hecate raised her hand towards her weasel, and gave Hazel an apologetic smile. “Peace, Gale.” She turned to look at Hazel. “Gale does not like hearing about nonbelievers and con artists. She herself was a witch herself once, you see.”
</p><p>“Your weasel was a witch?” Gale chittered and hissed at Hazel, running around Hecate’s feet. 
</p><p>“She’s a polecat, actually,” Hecate hummed. “But, yes- Gale was once a disagreeable human witch. She had terrible personal hygiene, plue extreme- ah, digestive issues.” The goddess waved her hand dismissively. “It gave my other followers a bad name.”
</p><p>“Okay…” Hazel tried not to look at the weasel- the polecat. Gale was still chittering at her angrily, and she let out another squeak from her backside.
</p><p>“At any rate, I turned her into a polecat. She’s much better as a polecat.” 
</p><p>Hazel looked at the dog affectionately nuzzling the goddess’ hand. She was petting it serenely, as if this was a normal conversation. “And your Labrador…?” Hecate looked down, as if just realising it was there.
</p><p>“Oh, she’s Hecuba, the former queen of Troy.” The dog huffed and nudged Hecate’s hand. “You’re right, Hecuba. We don’t have time for long introductions.” The goddess clasped her hands together in front of her. “The point is, Hazel Levesque, your mother may have claimed not to believe, but she had true magic. Eventually, she realised this. When she searched for a spell to summon Pluto, I helped her find it.” 
</p><p>“You…?”
</p><p>Hecate started circling Hazel again. “Yes. I saw potential in your mother. I see even more potential in you.”
</p><p>Hazel felt like her head was spinning. Her mother… She remembered her confession right before she died: how she had summoned Pluto, how the god had fallen in love with her, and how, because of her greed, Hazel was cursed. 
</p><p>Now, this goddess was saying that she was the reason all that happened. Hazel felt like her blood was molten gold: hot and boiling, but too heavy. She couldn’t move. She just clenched her fists. “My mother suffered because of that magic. My whole life-”
</p><p>“Your life wouldn’t have happened without me,” Hecate said flatly. Her black eyes seemed more intimidating now than before. “I have no time for your anger. Neither do you. Without my help, you will die.” 
</p><p>Hazel felt like her lungs were filling with gravel. “What kind of help?” Her tone was harsh, but the goddess didn’t seem to care. She raised her arms, the inky sleeves of the dress falling to show her deathly pale skin. The three gateways that she had come from all began to swirl with Mist, showing flickering black and white images, like the silent films from when Hazel was a child. 
</p><p>In the western gate, the Romans and Greeks were in full battle armor, fighting one another on a hillside with a large pine tree. The grass was stained red, strewn with the bodies of the wounded and dying. Hazel saw herself charging in on Arion, shouting- trying to stop the violence.
</p><p>To the east, the Argo II was plunging through the sky above the Apennines, the rigging in flames. A boulder smashed into the quarterdeck, and another through the hull. The ship burst like a water balloon, and the engine exploded.
</p><p>The images of the northern doorway were the worst. Hazel saw Annabeth, unconscious or dead, falling through the sky. She saw Piper clutching her arm, staggering alone down a tunnel as she bled through her shirt. She saw herself in a vast cavern filled with strands of light, like a glowing spider web. She was trying to break through while, in the distance, she could see Leo and Frank sprawled at the foot of two black and silver metal doors, unmoving.
</p><p>“Choices,” Hecate said. “You stand at the crossroads, Hazel Levesque. And I am the goddess of crossroads.” 
</p><p>The ground shook beneath Hazel’s feet. Silver coins, thousands of old Roman denarii broke the surface all around her. Hazel must have been so troubled by the visions in the gates that she summoned every bit of silver in a five mile radius. 
</p><p>“The past is close to the surface in this place,” Hecate continued. “In ancient times, two great Roman roads met here. News was exchanged. Markets were held. Friends met, and enemies fought. Entire armies had to choose a direction. Crossroads are always places of decision.” 
</p><p>Hazel’s mind flickered back to a shrine on Temple Hill back at Camp Jupiter, where demigods would flip a coin. Heads or tails. Hope that the god of doorways led you well. “Like… Like Janus.” Hazel had always hated that shrine. She didn’t understand why demigods were so willing to let a god choose for them. After all Hazel had been through, she trusted the wisdom of the gods about as much as a New Orleans slot machine. 
</p><p>Hecate seemed to share much of the same sentiment. She made a disgusted hiss, and Gale chittered angrily at the god’s name. “Janus and his doorways. He would have you believe that all choices are black or white, yes or no, in or out. In fact, it’s not that simple. Whenever you reach the crossroads, there are always at least three ways to go… Four, if you count going backward. You are at such a crossing now, Hazel.”
</p><p>Hazel looked back at the swirling gates: a demigod war, the destruction of the Argo II, disaster for herself and her friends, her family… “All of the choices are bad.”
</p><p>Hecate tsked. “All choices have risks,” she corrected. “But what is your goal?” 
</p><p>“My goal? None of these!” Hazel gestured to the doors helplessly. Hecuba snarled at Hazel, and Gale gnashed her teeth as she skittered around Hecate’s feet.
</p><p>“You could go backward. Retrace your steps to Rome… But Gaea’s forces are expecting that. None of you will survive.” 
</p><p>“So… What are you saying?” 
</p><p>Hecate’s form blurred as she stepped to the nearest torch and scooped up a handful of the fire. She sculpted the flames into a miniature map of Italy, and traced her finger over the map as she spoke. 
</p><p>“You could go west. Go back to America with your prize, the Athena Parthenos. Your comrades back home, Greek and Roman, are on the brink of war. Leave now, and you might save many lives.”
</p><p>“Might,” Hazel repeated. “But Gaea is supposed to wake in Greece. That’s where the giants are gathering.” 
</p><p>Hecate nodded. “True. Gaea has set the date of August first, the Feast of Spes, goddess of hope, for her rise to power. By waking on the day of Hope, she intends to destroy all hope forever. Even if you reached Greece by then, could you stop her? I do not know.” She moved her finger, tracing along the tops of the fiery Apennines. “You could go east, across the mountains, but Gaea will do anything to stop you from crossing Italy. She has raised her mountain gods against you.” 
</p><p>“We noticed,” Hazel said flatly. Hecate continued as if she hadn’t spoken.
</p><p>“Any attempt to cross the Apennines will mean the destruction of your ship. Ironically, this might be the safest option for your crew. I foresee that all of you would survive the explosion. It is possible, though unlikely, you could still reach Epirus and close the Doors of Death. You might find Gaea and prevent her rise. But by then, both demigod camps would be destroyed. You would have no home to return to.” Hecate hummed. “More likely, the destruction of your ship would strand you in the mountains. It would mean the end of your quest, but it would spare you and your friends much pain and suffering in the days to come. The war with the giants would have to be won or lost without you.” 
</p><p>Won or lost without us…
</p><p>A small, guilty part of Hazel found that appealing. Ever since New Orleans, when her mother started selling her cursed gems as charms, Hazel had been wishing for the chance to be a normal girl. She didn’t want any more pain for her or her friends. They’d been through enough, all of them. 
</p><p>Then Hazel looked to the middle gate, and that part died out. There was no way she could let herself be safe while they were in danger. A massive dark shape loomed over the pair, still sprawled helplessly in front of the doors, with it’s foot raised, as if to crush them. Hazel’s breath caught in her throat, and she forced herself to look away.
</p><p>“What about them?” Hazel asked. “Leo and Frank?” Hecate only shrugged.
</p><p>“West, east or south… They die.” Hazel felt her chest tighten. 
</p><p>“Not an option.”
</p><p>“Then you have only one path, though it is the most dangerous,” Hecate hummed, floating her finger across her miniature map. A glowing white line trailed behind, over the Apennines. “There is a secret pass here in the north, a place where I hold sway, where Hannibal once crossed when he marched against Rome.” The goddess traced a wide loop- to the top of Italy, then east to the sea, and then along the western coast of Greece. “Once through the pass, you would travel north to Bologna, and then to Venice. From there, sail the Adriatic to your goal, here: Epirus in Greece.”
</p><p>Hazel didn’t know much about geography. The location of the Adriatic Sea was a mystery to her, she had never heard of Bologna, and all she knew of Venice was vague stories about canals and gondolas. But as she looked at the burning white line on Hecate’s fiery mate, one thing was obvious: “That’s so out of the way.” 
</p><p>Hecate raised a single finger, like a mother scolding her child. “Which is why Gaea will not expect you to take this route. I can obscure your progress somewhat, but the success of your journey will depend on you, Hazel Levesque.” She gestured at Hazel pointedly. “You must learn to use the Mist.”
</p><p>Hazel felt her heart fall. “Me? Use the Mist how?”
</p><p>Hecate closed her hand, extinguishing the fiery map of Italy with a faint hiss. She waved her other hand towards Hecuba. White completely shrouded the black dog, before clearing moments later with an audible poof. The black dog was no longer there, but instead an annoyed looking black kitten in her place. “I am the goddess of the Mist,” Hecate explained as Hecuba-kitten nuzzled against her leg. “I am responsible for keeping the veil that separates the world of the gods from the world of the mortals. My children learn to use the Mist to their advantage, to create illusions or influence the minds of mortals. Other demigods can do this as well. And so must you, Hazel, if you are to help your friends.” 
</p><p>Hazel stared at the black kitten. “But…” She knew it was actually Hecuba. She knew it was really a black Labrador. But she couldn’t convince herself. The cat seemed so real. “I can’t do that.” 
</p><p>“Your mother had the talent,” Hecate said. “You have even more. As a child of Pluto who has returned from the dead, you understand the veil between worlds better than most. You can control the Mist. If you do not… Well, your brother Nico has already warned you. The spirits have whispered to him, told him of your future. When you reach the House of hades, you will meet a formidable enemy. She cannot be overcome by strength or sword. You alone can defeat her, and you will require magic.”
</p><p>Hazel felt sick. She was certain she was going to pass out any moment. Her knees buckled, and her hands wouldn’t stop shaking as she remembered Nico’s grim expression, his fingers digging into her arm. You can’t tell the others. Not yet. Their courage is already stretched to the limit.
</p><p>“Who?” Hazel hated how her voice broke. “Who is this enemy?” 
</p><p>“I will not speak her name,” Hecate said. “That would alert her to your presence before you are ready to face her. Go north, Hazel. As you travel, practice summoning the Mist. When you arrive in Bologna, seek out two dwarfs. They will lead you to a treasure that may help you survive in the House of Hades.”
</p><p>“I don’t understand.” 
</p><p>The kitten mewed at Hecate and batted at her dress hem. The goddess sighed and flicked her wrist. “Yes, yes, Hecuba.” The kitten returned to a black Labrador. “You will understand, Hazel. From time to time, I will send Gale to check on your progress.” The polecat hissed at Hazel.
</p><p>“Wonderful,” she muttered.
</p><p>“Before you reach Epirus, you must be prepared. If you succeed, then perhaps we will meet again… For the final battle.” A final battle, Hazel thought. Oh, joy.
Hazel didn’t know if she could prevent what she had seen in the Mist- Annabeth falling through the sky; Piper stumbling alone in the darkness, gravely wounded; Leo and Frank at the mercy of a dark giant.
</p><p>She hated the gods’ riddles and their unclear advice. She always had. She was starting to despise crossroads. 
</p><p>Hazel narrowed her eyes at the goddess. “Why are you helping me?” She demanded. “At Camp Jupiter, they said that you sided with the Titans in the last war.” 
</p><p>Hecate’s eyes glinted like tar, and Hazel suddenly felt like she had made the wrong choice, questioning her. “Because I am a Titan- daughter of Perses and Asteria. Long before the Olympians came to power, I ruled the Mist. Despite this, in the First Titan War, millennia ago, I sided with Zeus against Kronos. I was not blind to Kronos’ cruelty. I hoped Zeus would prove to be a better king.” She let out a bitter laugh, the kind that told you that there was really nothing at all to laugh about. “When Demeter lost her daughter Perssephone, kidnapped by your father, I guided Demeter through the darkest night with my torches, helping her search. And when the giants rose the first time, I again sided with the gods. I fought my archenemy Clytius, made by Gaea to absorb and defeat all my magic.” 
</p>
<p>“Clytius…” Hazel repeated. She had never heard the name before, but just saying it made her limbs feel heavy and sapped of energy. She looked to the northern gate, to Leo and Frank laying in the shadow of a giant. “Is he the threat in the House of Hades?”
</p><p>“Oh, he waits for you there,” Hecate confirmed. “But first you must defeat the witch. Unless you manage that…” She snapped, and the images in all three doorways turned dark.
</p><p>“We all face choices,” she continued. “When Kronos arose the second time, I made a mistake. I supported him. I had grown tired of being ignored by the so-called major gods. Despite my years of faithful service, they mistreated me, refused me a seat in their hall…” Gale chittered angrily in agreement. Hecate sighed and raised a hand to placate the polecat. “It does not matter anymore. I have made peace again with Olympus. Even now, when they are laid low- Their Greek and Roman personas fighting each other- I will help them. Greek or Roman, I have always been only Hecate. I will assist you against the giants, if you prove yourself worthy. So now it is your choice, Hazel Levesque. Will you trust me… Or will you shun me, as the Olympian gods have done too often?”
</p><p>Hazel could feel her heart pounding. Could she trust this goddess, who’d given her mother the magic that had ruined her life? Ruined both of their lives? No. And she didn’t much care for Hecate’s dog or gassy polecat, either.
</p><p>But she also knew that she couldn’t let Leo and Frank die.
</p><p>“I’ll go north,” Hazel said, teeth clenched. “We’ll take your secret pass through the mountains.” 
</p><p>Hecate nodded, lips quirking up into a smug smile. “You have chosen well, though the path will not be easy. Many monsters will rise against you. Even some of my own servants have sided with Gaea, hoping to destroy your mortal world.” The goddess took her touches from their stands. “Prepare yourself, daughter of Pluto. If you succeed against the witch, we will meet again.” 
</p><p>“I’ll succeed,” Hazel said, determination evident in her voice. “And Hecate? I’m not choosing one of your paths. I’m making my own.” 
</p><p>The goddess raised a brow. Her dog snarled at Hazel, and the polecat chittered and gnashed her teeth. Hazel ignored them.
“We’re going to find a way to stop Gaea. We’re going to rescue our friends from Tartarus. We’re going to keep the crew and the ship together, and we’re going to stop Camp Jupiter and Camp Half-Blood from going to war. We’re going to do it all.” The storm around them howled, and the funnel cloud started to swirl faster. Hecate began to circle Hazel again.
</p><p>“Interesting,” she said, as if Hazel were an unexpected result in a science experiment. “That… would be magic worth seeing.” 
</p><p>A wave of darkness overcame Hazel. When her sight finally returned, the storm, the goddess, and her minions had all disappeared, as if they were never there in the first place. The morning sunlight was blinding on the hilltop as it reflected off the half-buried Roman denarii. She stood alone in the ruins now, except for Arion who knickered and pawed at the ground impatiently. 
</p><p>“I agree,” Hazel said to Arion. “Let’s get out of here.” 
</p>
<p>----------
</p><p>“What happened?” Nico asked as Hazel climbed aboard the Argo II. Hazel’s hands were still shaking from her talk with the goddess. As she looked over the rail, she could make out a trail of dust left behind by Arion as he ran. Hazel had hoped her friend would stay, but she couldn’t blame him for wanting to get away as fast as possible. She would have joined him, if she could have. 
</p><p>The countryside was bright in the morning sun, and the ruins on the hill looked almost peaceful this far away. No swirling storm, no goddesses, no farting weasels. 
</p><p>“Hazel?” Nico asked again. 
</p><p>Her knees buckled. Annabeth was suddenly grabbing her under her arms, and Nico was trying to help them both to the steps of the foredeck. She felt embarrassed for collapsing like some fairy-tale damsel, and guilty for putting strain on the two healing demigods. But her energy had just abandoned her. The memory of the glowing scenes at the crossroads filled her with dread. 
</p><p>“I met Hecate…” she managed.
</p><p>She didn’t tell them everything. Their courage is already stretched to the limit. But she did tell them about the secret northern pass, and the detour Hecate had described that could take them to Epirus. 
</p><p>When she was done, she felt drained. Nico took her hand, eyes full of concern. “Hazel, you met Hecate at a crossroads. That’s… That’s something many demigods don’t survive. And the ones who do survive are never the same. Are you sure your-”
</p><p>“I'm fine,” she insisted.
</p><p>She wasn’t. She knew she wasn’t. She remembered how angry she had been at Hecate, how bold she had felt, telling the goddess that she’d find her own path and succeed at everything. Now, her courage had abandoned her and her boast felt ridiculous. But they didn’t have time to worry about her. Seeing Leo and Frank laying lifeless…
</p><p>“What if Hecate is tricking us?” Nico asked, frowning. “This route could be a trap.” Hazel shook her head. 
</p><p>“If it was a trap, I think Hecate would have made the northern route sound tempting. Believe me, she didn’t.” 
</p><p>Annabeth wobbled over the helm and looked over a map, frowning. “That’s… That’s easily three hundred miles out of our way, to get to Venice. And then we’d have to backtrack down to the Adriatic… Did Hecate say anything else about these dwarves?” she asked, beginning to pencil out a route on the maps. Hazel shook her head.
</p><p>“No, only that they would lead us to some treasure to help us with the quest.” 
</p><p>Nico stood and helped Hazel to her feet. “It’s our best option. We have to make up for lost time, travel as fast as we can. Leo’s and Frank’s lives might depend on it.” 
</p><p>Annabeth hummed. “I’ll see what I can do to get boosters started. If nothing else, we can always wake up Percy.” She started flipping switches and turning dials, trying to find out who Leo had controlled the speed of the Argo II. 
</p><p>Nico took Hazel’s arm, and supported her weight more than she would have liked to admit as he led them out of earshot. “What else did Hecate say? Anything about-?”
</p><p>“I can’t,” Hazel cut him off. She couldn’t relive the images she had seen right now. They had almost overwhelmed her then, and even now, she felt so helpless thinking of Leo and Frank at the base of those metal doors, herself trapped in a glowing maze of light, unable to reach them.
</p><p>You must defeat the witch, Hecate had said. You alone can defeat her. Unless you manage that…
</p><p>The end, Hazel finished, remembering how all the gates had fallen dark. All hope extinguished. 
</p><p>Nico had warned her. He’d communed with the dead, heard them whispering hints about their future. Two children of the Underworld would enter the House of Hades. They would face an impossible foe. Only one would make it to the Doors of Death. 
</p><p>Hazel couldn't meet her brother’s eyes. 
</p><p>“I’ll tell you later,” she promised. Her voice wavered. “Right now, we should rest while we can. Tonight, we cross the Apennines.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Leo</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hesiod.</p><p>As he fell, Leo stumbled upon the name of the Greek poet he had been thinking of earlier. Already, he had lost track of how long he had Frank had been falling- hours? Days? It could have been an eternity, and Leo wouldn’t have known. Leo hadn’t let go of Frank’s wrist since they dropped into the chasm, and every once in a while, he tried to spark a flame in his free hand, but the total darkness and speeding winds swallowed it every time. 
</p><p>Wind screamed in Leo’s ears. His head throbbed, and he could feel the air growing warm around him. He had never had issues with heat, some sort of gift from his dad, but now, he was sweating as he fell. The heat blowing up at him was otherworldly.
</p><p>All Leo could think about was Nemesis. The goddess had promised he’d have to pay the price for opening the fortune cookie. He thought maybe, maybe he was lucky enough to get away with it just being the loss of Archimedes’ workshop. He had gotten Frank and Hazel out of that alive, and that was just fine for him. Leo's never been that lucky. The price… Leo might as well have never opened the cookie. He and Frank were as good as dead now. That damn cookie had cost two lives. If it was just him, then Leo could deal with it. But to have Frank dragged into this… He didn’t have a choice in Leo opening the cookie. Leo might as well have burned his life-line himself. 
</p><p>He could feel sobs building in his chest. This wasn’t fair. He’d been through so much in his life, why add this on top of it? Leo didn’t think the gods would toy with his life so much, just for their enjoyment.
</p><p>But Gaea wasn’t like other gods. Leo knew this. He’d met her one too many times. She was more vicious, more blood thirsty. She would play with demigod lives like toys, until she tired and she killed them before they got in her way. Leo could practically hear old Potty-Sludge laughing at him as he and Frank plunged to their deaths.
</p><p>A hiccuping-sob burst out of Leo, quickly torn away from his lips. He doubted Frank had heard him, and he was grateful for that small blessing. He already knew Frank didn’t see him as serious enough. He didn’t need anything else to be added on top of that. 
</p><p>Though, he supposed it didn’t matter. They weren’t getting out of this alive. Frank had tried to change form a few times, with no luck, and anything Leo would try to build with spares from his toolbelt would be ripped from his hands instantly. And, Leo may not have been the best student in school, but… He knew enough science to know that if they reached the bottom at terminal velocity, it would be terminal. 
</p><p>Their surroundings changed. Leo realised he could see Frank’s face faintly as the darkness took on a grey-red tinge. The whistling in his ears only grew louder. Leo grew warmer, and the smell of sulfur was strong in the air. The chasm they had been falling down opened into a vast cavern, and for a moment, Leo’s mind was still. He could see the bottom of the cavern about a mile down from where they were, and just from what he could see, Leo figured the entire island of Manhattan could fit inside. Red clouds hung in the air, light vaporised blood. The ground was covered in jagged mountains and fiery canyons. To his left, the ground dropped into a series of cliffs, like colossal steps leading even deeper into the abyss. 
</p><p>The stench of rotten egg made it hard to concentrate, but Leo looked directly below him and saw a ribbon of glittering black liquid. A river. A possibility.
</p><p>Leo’s fingers lit up with excitement, and he stared at his hand. He didn’t feel that same fatigue he had felt earlier. The fire glowed bright and hot, stronger than it did on the surface. The sulfur, his mind supplied. Leo looked to Frank, who was frowning deeply, staring at the ground. He seemed to have resigned himself to his fate. Leo clenched his fist. He had promised he would get Frank home to Hazel, and he was going to do it. When they were about a telephone pole’s height away from the ground, Leo lit his hand and aimed a fireball at a neon yellow rock on the ground. The sulfur cluster exploded into a blue flame, and it shot him and Frank backwards, with less force than the fall had been sending them. 
</p><p>The river hurtled towards them. Leo knew this had been their only option to survive, but he couldn’t stop thinking about all the horrible stories he’d been told about the rivers of the Underworld at camp. They could take away your memories, burn your body or soul to ashes. But they needed to survive. This was their best choice. Falling into the river from 150 feet up should be relatively safe. Leo closed his eyes and tightened his grip on Frank’s wrist, bracing for impact.
</p>
<p>----------
</p><p>The impact didn’t kill him, and neither did the explosion, but the cold nearly did.
</p><p>In an environment where Leo was already so unused to feeling the heat, the freezing water shocked the air out of his lungs. His limbs seized, and he lost hold of Frank’s wrist in the rapids. The roaring of the river filled his ears- only it wasn’t the river. It was the sound of voices, thousands wailing, as if the water was made of pure sadness. Leo could have sworn he heard his mother’s scream underneath it all.
</p><p>What’s the point of struggling? they told him. You’re dead anyway. You’ll never leave this place.
</p><p>The voices were worse than the cold.
</p><p>He could sink down to the bottom. Allow the river to swallow him and drown him, let the current carry his body away. That would be easier than all this fighting. He could just close his eyes…
</p><p>Frank’s hand grabbed his. Leo jolted. He couldn’t see him in the murky water, only the wailing faces of the dead, but suddenly he didn’t want to die. He kicked upwards, tugging Frank after him. Together, they broke the surface.
</p><p>Leo gasped. He hadn’t realised how his lungs were screaming at him until he had taken a breath. The water swirled around them, and Frank looked exhausted as he kicked to keep himself afloat. Leo couldn’t make out any of their surroundings, and the screaming voices surrounding him didn’t help his focus, but he knew that this was a river. Rivers had shores. He had seen as much as they fell. He began kicking, dragging Frank along with him. “Land,” he coughed out. “Go sideways.” 
</p><p>Frank nodded weakly, but he didn’t make an effort to move. Leo hooked an arm around him and started kicking. Frank seemed to get the message, and began to do the same. The river worked against them, the current seeming to push them just as far back as they managed to go forwards. Thousands of weeping voices whispered in his mind, getting under his skin, his mother’s voice the backing for all of them.
</p><p>Life is despair, they said. Frank seemed to kick a little weaker. Leo couldn’t help but wonder, if Leo heard his mother… What did Frank hear? Everything is pointless, and then you die.
</p><p>“Pointless,” Frank murmured, teeth chattering. He stopped swimming entirely and began to sink. Leo was pulled with him.
</p><p>“Frank!” Leo knew the river was doing this. He recognised this story. He learned about it the same time he learned about Hesiod. If he could just- “Snap out of it, big guy! The river- It’s messing with your mind! It’s, like, made of pure misery!”
</p><p>“Misery,” he agreed. 
</p><p>“Come on, fight it, man!” Leo kicked harder, trying to keep them both afloat. His legs burned with the effort, and Leo could almost hear Gaea’s laughter echoing in the cavern. The son of fire and descendant of Poseidon drown after surviving a lethal fall. Not happening Sand-Face. 
</p><p>Leo grabbed onto Frank tighter. “Tell me about Hazel,” he insisted. He needed to keep Frank talking. 
</p><p>“Hazel…” He murmured. 
</p><p>“Yeah, Mystique! Hazel!” 
</p><p>Leo’s heart hurt at the thought of hearing Frank gush about his girlfriend, he knew that it was important to keep Frank’s morale up. If he didn’t, they’d both drown.
</p><p>“S-She’s… She’s pretty…” He muttered, dazed. Leo let out a sharp laugh at the blunt response, and the sound sent a shock through the water. The wailing voices were pushed to background noise. Distantly, he wondered if anyone had laughed in Tartarus. He doubted it. 
</p><p>“What else?”
</p><p>“She’s… She’s smart,” Frank said, the hazy fog clearing from his eyes. He was swimming with Leo now, and he could make out the dark line of the shore in the distance. The current seemed to push against them more ferociously, but with Frank helping him, the distance started to close. “And when she gets confused, h-her nose scrunches up and she tugs at her fingers…” 
</p><p>Leo’s feet dug into the sandy bottom of the riverbank, and he tugged on Frank’s wrist, pulling him on shore. They both collapsed on the dark sand, shivering and gasping. Leo wanted to curl into a ball and set himself on fire to warm up. He wanted to go to sleep and wake up in the engine room of the Argo II, having just had another nightmare because he couldn’t be bothered to go to his own room and the sounds of the engine were disturbing his sleep. 
</p><p>But he knew it wasn’t a dream. He had opened the cookie. They were in Tartarus. At their feet, a river of pure misery roared past, lapping past the shore line like it was still trying to pull them in. The sulfurous air stung Leo’s lungs and prickled his skin. When he looked down at his arms, he saw that he was already covered with an angry red rash and the beginnings of blisters. He pushed himself up on his hands, and let out a gasp of pain.
</p><p>The black sand wasn’t sand. It was jagged, sharp glass, some of which was now stuck in his palms. Leo looked at his hands, and watched the blood bead up on his skin. 
</p><p>The air was acid. The water was wretchedness. The ground was glass. Everything here was designed to hurt and kill. As an engineer, Leo could appreciate the lengths gone to. Nothing was overlooked. As a survivor, he wondered if the voices in the river were right. Maybe fighting for survival was pointless. They’d be dead within the hour. 
</p><p>Leo faked a smile and looked down at Frank, who was still laying on the glass, trying to catch his breath. “This place smells like my Tia Rosa,” he joked. Smile and joke, even when you don’t feel like it. Especially when you don’t feel like it. That had always been Leo’s motto. That’s what had kept him sane. 
</p><p>Frank cracked a smile and huffed a laugh through his nose.
</p><p>Despite what he had said, Leo was glad, in a guilty sort of way, that Frank had fallen into Tartarus with him. If he had fallen alone, he didn’t know if he would have even tried to survive. He would have just curled up in that river and cried until he became another ghost, another wailing voice. 
</p><p>But he wasn’t alone. He had Frank, and Frank had to get back. And that gave Leo something to fight for. So Leo couldn’t give up. 
</p><p>He took stock. He was a little sore from the impact of the river, but nothing felt broken. He still had his toolbelt, but he didn’t know where his Sphere was. He couldn’t remember if he had left it on the surface, or if it had gotten lost in the fall. His mind was too scrambled. He lit his fingers, relieved to find he could still make flames. Leo looked over at Frank. He was weaponless.
</p><p>No food. No water… Basically no supplies at all. Yep. That’s a promising start.
</p><p>Frank didn’t look to be going too good. His ankle looked swollen, and his t-shirt was ripped to shreds. Leo was sure he didn’t look much better. Most worrisome, however, was that he was still shivering, and his lips were a pale shade of blue.
</p><p>Normally, Leo would set himself on fire to dry the other’s clothes, but he didn’t want to risk lighting up his life-line. Instead, he shakily got to his feet. “We should keep moving or we’ll get hypothermia,” Leo said. He wasn’t too worried about himself. Already, his body temperature was starting to feel regulated again. But he knew Frank’s body wouldn’t adjust to the heat like his. “Can you stand?” Frank nodded, and Leo offered a hand to pull him up. Frank almost pulled him down instead. 
Leo wrapped an arm around Frank’s waist, and Frank slung his arm over Leo’s shoulders, but he didn’t know exactly who was supporting who. He scanned their surroundings, but when he looked up, he couldn’t see any trace of the chasm they had fallen from. Even the roof of the cavern was obscured by darkness- all that was visible was the blood-coloured clouds in the hazy grey air. 
</p><p>The black beach stretched on for about another fifty yards, then dropped suddenly off a cliff. From where they stood, Leo couldn’t see what was below, but the edge flickered with red and orange light. Leo knew that light well. It seemed to be illuminated by huge fires.
</p><p>“Look…” Frank said, pointing downstream. About a hundred feet away, a familiar looking red Italian sports car had crashed head first into the sand. It looked exactly like the one that had almost crushed Annabeth and had sent Arachne into Tartarus. Leo felt sick looking at it. He hoped he was wrong, and part of him didn’t want to go anywhere near it, but how many Fiats could there be in Tartarus? And deep down, Leo knew he wouldn’t be content until he saw for himself. 
He began walking towards the Fiat, Frank stepping in time with him as they stumbled towards the wreckage. One of the tires had come off and was floating in the murky waters of the river, and all of the windows had shattered, but it didn’t make a difference to the glass beach, only making the lighter glass stand out like stars on a night. Under the hood laid the tattered, glistening remains of a giant silk cocoon- the trap that Annabeth has tricked Archane into weaving. It was unmistakably empty. Frank looked sick, looking at the trap. 
</p><p>“She’s alive…” Leo muttered. The words came out quiet, but he was filled with burning rage, outraged by the unfairness of it all. 
</p><p>“It’s Tartarus,” Frank said. “Monster home base. Down here, maybe they can’t die.” He quickly shot Leo an embarrassed look, seeming to realise he wasn't helping the already low morale. “Or… Maybe she’s badly wounded and she crawled away to die.” 
</p><p>“Let’s go with that.” 
</p><p>Frank was still shivering, and Leo felt unnaturally warm, despite his clothes still being damp. The hot, sticky air felt like it was suffocating him. His hands were still bleeding, which was concerning. Generally, Leo healed fast. He shouldn’t have gotten pricked in the first place. He had built up more than enough calluses on his hands to deflect those glass shards. His breathing got more and more labored, and Frank’s matched, his teeth still chattering. 
</p><p>“This place is killing us,” Leo said. “I mean, it’s literally going to kill us…” Frank got a far away look on his face, and he paled even more. 
</p><p>“I have an idea,” he muttered. 
</p><p>“You do?” Frank nodded. He didn’t look very confident, and Leo noticed how he instinctively reached for the inside of his jacket pocket, breathing a sigh of relief when he found his life-line.
</p><p>“We need to find the Phlegethon.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Leo</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When they reached the ledge, Leo was sure they were about to die. The cliff dropped more than eighty feet, easily, and at the bottom stretched a nightmarish version of the Grand Canyon, which Leo didn’t have pleasant memories of to begin with. There was a river of fire cutting a path through jagged obsidian crevasses, and the glowing red cast terrifying shadows along the cliff faces.<br/>
</p><p>Even from the top of the cliff, Leo could feel the heat. His shirt was still damp from the cold of the river, but his face felt raw and sunburned, even with his body working overtime to regulate his temperature. He could only imagine how much worse it was for Frank. Every breath took effort, like he was stuffed with sawdust. The cuts on his hands hadn’t stopped bleeding, and only seemed to be getting worse.<br/>
</p><p>Leo had no clue what Frank’s plan could be. Whatever it was, if it involved another Underworld river, Leo wanted nothing to do with it. But, Leo also didn’t have any plans to keep alive, and it wasn’t like they could just stay where they were. The whole place was about as healthy as a nuclear blast zone. They’d die here or there, so they might as well give Frank’s idea a shot.<br/>
</p><p>Leo scanned the cliff faces, eyes catching on a fissure running diagonally from the edge to the bottom. “We can try that ledge there. Might be able to climb down.” Frank gave a curt nod and headed towards the ledge. Leo watched him climb for a second, until there was enough room for Leo to step on. The ledge was barely wide enough to allow for a toehold. Everytime Frank stepped with his left foot, he let out a hiss of air and winced. They clawed at the glassy cliff face for any hand holds, tearing up the skin of their fingers. Leo felt too stiff, too nervous. He needed to say something before he started thinking too much.<br/>
</p><p>Below him, Frank let out another hiss of pained air as he moved to grab another hand hold. Leo winced in solidarity. “So…” Leo started, “What’s this fire river called again?”<br/>
</p><p>“The Phlegethon,” Frank answered. “You should concentrate on going down.”<br/>
</p><p>“The Phlegethon?” Leo snickered. “Sounds like a marathon for hawking lugies.”<br/>
</p><p>“Please don’t make me laugh.”<br/>
</p><p>“Just trying to keep things light.”<br/>
</p><p>Frank grunted. “Thanks. I’ll have a smile on my face as I plummet to my death.” Leo didn’t answer, after almost missing a step with his right foot. They had made it roughly a third of the way down, still plenty high enough to die if they fell.<br/>
</p><p>They kept going, one step at a time. Leo’s eyes stung with sweat, and he wished he could reach into his toolbelt to get a sweatband. But there was absolutely no way he would be able to do that on the cliff face. His arms were shaking from exertion, and his palms were even more torn up than before. He could see where he had left bloody handprints on the stones. But they finally made it to the bottom.<br/>
</p><p>Leo had miscalculated the steps, and stumbled when he reached the ground. Frank caught him, and Leo was alarmed by how feverish he felt. His clothes were still wet and cold, despite the hot air, but that didn’t seem to have cooled Frank’s temperature any. Blisters from the Tartarus air had erupted on his face, reminding Leo of his foster brother in Oklahoma with the worst acne he had ever seen. Frank helped Leo steady himself onto his feet. “Just to the river… We can do this.”<br/>
</p><p>They staggered over glass ledges, around boulders the size Festus was at his best, avoiding stalagmites sharper than any blade Leo had seen. They almost fell a few times, the glassy obsidian slick. Leo could see the steam rising from their clothes from the heat of the river, but they didn’t stop. Just kept going until they collapsed on their knees at the banks of the Phlegethon.<br/>
</p><p>“We have to drink,” Frank said. His eyes were half closed and glazed over.<br/>
</p><p>“Drink… Fire?”<br/>
</p><p>“The Phlegethon flows from Hades’ realm down into Tartarus. The river is used to punish the wicked. But also…” Frank took a gasping breath. “Some legends call it the River of Healing.”<br/>
</p><p>“Some legends?” Leo could barely talk. His throat was closing up from the heat and acidic air. He swallowed, trying to keep conscious, and maybe soothe the burning in his throat. It didn’t work.<br/>
</p><p>“The Phlegethon keeps the wicked in one piece so that they can endure the torments of the Fields of Punishments. I think it’s like… The Underworld equivalent of nectar and ambrosia.” He winced as cinders sprayed from the fire, and he instinctively reached for his jacket pocket. “But, it’s fire. I don’t know how-”<br/>
</p><p>“Like this.” Leo thrust his hands into the river. Stupid? Oh, absolutely. But Leo was convinced that there was no other way for them to survive. He didn’t need Frank to try and convince him anymore. If they waited any longer, they would pass out and die. He’d rather try something foolish and hope it worked. He excelled at that.<br/>
</p><p>The fire wasn’t painful. In fact, it felt cool, similar to how it felt when he summoned flames. For the first time in a while, Leo felt like his fire powers weren’t a curse. Of course, the coolness could just be from the flames being so hot it was overwhelming his nerves. Before he could change his mind, he cupped his hands and raised it to his mouth.<br/>
</p><p>He expected it to taste like gasoline, or maybe the air in Tia Rosa’s house after she got done chain smoking a pack of cigarettes. It was much worse. On the whole, it didn’t taste like anything, but he could feel it. It felt like when he had gone with his mom to the market and grabbed a ghost pepper to look at it. When she made him put it down, he started crying and rubbing at his eyes. It felt like he had just gotten an eyeful of ghost chili in his eye, but in his throat. His sinuses filled with liquid flame, and his eyes shed boiling tears. Every boil on his face and arms popped. He collapsed, gagging and retching violently, his body seizing.<br/>
</p><p>“Leo!” Frank grabbed his arms and pinned him to the ground, just managing to keep him from rolling into the river.<br/>
</p><p>The convulsions passed. Leo felt horribly weak and nauseous, the same way he always did after throwing up. He sat up and took a ragged breath, and his lungs filled easier. The cuts on his hands were starting to close.<br/>
</p><p>“It worked…” Leo croaked. His throat felt horribly dry and sore. “Frank, it worked.”<br/>
</p><p>“I…” Frank’s eyes rolled up into the back of his head, and he slumped against him. Leo quickly pushed him off to where he was laying down, ahe he desperately cupped more fire into his hands. It burned this time, but he ignored the pain as he dripped the liquid into Frank’s mouth. He didn’t respond. Leo tried again, getting another handful and pouring it down his throat. Frank’s eyes shot open, and he spluttered and coughed. He began to shake as the fire coursed through his system, and Leo held him, trying to keep him steady. His boils popped. His fever broke. He sat up and took a rasping breath.<br/>
</p><p>“Ugh…” He grimaced. “That was… not pleasant.” Leo let out a weak laugh. He was so relieved, he felt light headed.<br/>
</p><p>“You saved us.”<br/>
</p><p>“For now,” Frank said. “The problem is, we’re still in Tartarus.”<br/>
</p><p>Leo looked around, the absurdity of the whole situation hitting him all at once like a truck. “Yeah… Holy Hephaestus. I always kinda just assumed that Tartarus was an empty space, like a pit with no bottom. But… This is a real place.”<br/>
</p><p>“We haven’t seen all of it,” Frank said. “This could just be the first tiny part of the abyss.”<br/>
</p><p>“The welcome mat. It’s not very welcoming, huh?” They gazed up at the blood colored clouds swirling above them in a grey haze. There would be no way that they could climb back up the cliff, even if they wanted to. There were only two options now- downstream or upstream, skirting the banks of the Phlegethon. “Well find a way out,” Leo said after a beat. “The Doors of Death.”<br/>
</p><p>Looking back, Leo knew it was a stupid promise to make, to meet everyone at the Door of Death. The idea seemed even crazier than drinking fire. How could the two of them wander through Tartarus and find the Doors of Death? They’d barely been able to stumble one hundred yards in this poisonous place without dying. But he knew… “We have to. Not just for us. For everyone we love.” Leo felt a pang in his heart as he said that. Leo didn’t have someone to return to like Frank did. “The Doors have to be closed on both sides,” he continued, “Or the monsters will just keep coming through. Gaea’s forces will overrun the world.”<br/>
</p><p>Even though Leo knew that everything he said was true, it was all talk. When he tried to imagine some plan that could succeed, the logistics overwhelmed him. They had no way of locating the Doors, they didn’t know how long it would take, or if time even flowed the same way in Tartarus. How could they possibly synchronize a meeting? And Nico had mentioned that a legion of Gaea’s strongest monsters were guarding the Doors on the Tartarus. Leo and Frank couldn’t exactly launch a full frontal assault, not when their abilities were so touch-and-go.<br/>
</p><p>But he decided not to mention any of that. They both knew the odds were bad.<br/>
</p><p>“Well,” Frank took a deep breath, “If we stay close to the river, we’ll have a way to heal ourselves. If we go downstream-”<br/>
</p><p>It happened so fast, Leo’s body reacted before his mind. His eyes locked on a dark shape behind Frank hurtling towards them- a snarling, monstrous blob with spindly barbed legs and glinting eyes. The smell of the spider was sickly sweet and smothered Leo’s senses.<br/>
</p><p>Leo vaguely saw Frank spin on his heel, but he was more focused on launching a spray of fire over Frank’s head and hitting the massive spider. A horrible wail echoed through the canyon as fire enveloped the creature. He watched it dissolve, the yellow dust- the remains of Arachne- raining around Frank like pollen.<br/>
</p><p>Frank turned around, but Leo was scanning the cliffs and boulders for other monsters, fire in hand. Nothing else appeared. “You okay?”<br/>
</p><p>“She… Would’ve killed me…” Frank said, looking between Leo and the dust. Leo kicked the dust into the river, a trick he had learned from Percy to keep monsters from reforming as fast. The liquid fire churned the remains, and any left on the shore turned to steam.<br/>
</p><p>“She died too easily, considering how much tourture she’s put you through. Put all of us through.” Leo was surprised by the hard edge in his own voice.<br/>
</p><p>“How did you move so fast?” Frank asked. Leo shrugged.<br/>
</p><p>“Gotta watch each other’s backs, right? And ADHD keeps me on pretty high alert. Now, what was this about downstream?”<br/>
</p><p>Frank nodded, still looking at the steaming monster dust. Leo, in a way, felt relieved. At least now they knew monsters could be killed in Tartarus… Though he had no idea how long Arachne would remain dead. He didn’t plan on staying long enough to find out.<br/>
</p><p>“Yeah, downstream,” Frank managed. “If the river comes from the upper levels of the Underworld, if should flow deeper into Tartarus-”<br/>
</p><p>“And into more dangerous territory,” Leo finished. “Which is probably where the Doors are. Lucky us.”<br/>
</p>
<p>----------<br/>
</p>
<p>They’d only traveled a few hundred yards when Leo started hearing voices over the crackling of the fire river.<br/>
</p>
<p>He plodded along, half in a stupor, trying to form a plan. He wished he had Annabeth’s skill for strategizing. It was hard enough to keep his mind focused long enough to come up with a viable plan, even without his stomach growling and his throat baking. The Phlegethon may have healed him and given him strength, but it didn’t do anything for his hunger and thirst. Though, if he went off of what Frank had said, the river wasn’t really about making you feel good, just keeping you going so you could feel more excruciating pain.<br/>
</p><p>Leo’s eyes were starting to droop with exhaustion, and his head felt like it was stuffed with cotton. Then he heard them- female voices having some sort of argument- and he was instantly alert.<br/>
</p><p>“Frank!” He grabbed his arm and yanked him behind the nearest boulder, lighting his fingertips on fire in defense. They were wedged so close against the riverbank that his shoes almost touched the river’s fire. Leo could see Frank’s eyes darling nervously between Leo’s hand and the river. On the other side of the boulder, in the narrow path between the river and the cliffs, voices snarled, getting louder as they approached from upstream.<br/>
</p><p>Leo tried to steady his breathing. The voices sounded human, but that meant nothing. He assumed anything in Tartarus was out to kill them. He didn’t know how the monsters could have failed to spot them already. They could smell demigods- especially when they were grouped up like Leo and Frank. Leo doubted that hiding behind a boulder would do any good once the monsters caught their scent. Still, anything to keep the element of surprise. That was their best chance.<br/>
</p><p>As the monsters got nearer, the voices didn’t change. There was no sign that they had noticed Frank and Leo. Their uneven footsteps- scrap, clump, scrap, clump- reminded Leo of the broken machines in his mom’s old workshop. They didn’t get any faster. “Soon?” One asked in a raspy voice. She sounded like she had been gargling the Phlegethon.<br/>
</p><p>“Oh my gods!” Another voice answered. This one sounded younger, and much more human. It reminded Leo of the girls who used to pick on Piper at the Wilderness school. Teenaged, entitled, annoying. “You guys are totally annoying! I told you, it’s like three days from here.”<br/>
</p><p>A chorus of growling and grumbling followed. The creatures- Leo guessed there was about half a dozen, by the footsteps- had paused just on the other side of the boulder. Frank gripped Leo’s wrist, face twisted in anxiety, but they gave no indication that they had caught the demigods’ scent. Vaguely, Leo wondered if demigods didn’t smell the same in Tartarus, or if other scents here were so powerful, they masked it. The sulfur smell was pretty strong.<br/>
</p><p>“I wonder,” said a third voice, gravelly and raspy like the first one, “if perhaps you do not know the way, young one.”<br/>
</p><p>“Oh, shut your fang hole, Serephone,” said the annoying girl. “When’s the last time you escaped to the mortal world? I was there a couple years ago. I know the way! Besides, I understand what we’re facing up there. You don’t have a clue!”<br/>
</p><p>“The Earth Mother did not make you boss!” Shrieked a fourth voice. More hissing, scuffling, and feral moans- like giant alley cats fighting. Eventually, Serephone seemed to get fed up.<br/>
</p><p>“Enough!” She yelled. The scuffling died down, with a few grumbles and huffs, and unflattering Greek curses thrown at each other. “We will follow you for now,” Serephone said. “But if you do not lead us well, if we find out you have lied about the summons of Gaea-”<br/>
</p><p>“I do not!” The teenage girl whined. “Believe me, I’ve got good reason to get into this battle. I have some enemies to devour, and you’ll feast on the blood of heroes. Just leave one special morsel for me- the one named Percy Jackson.” Leo fought down a snarl, and Frank’s grip on his wrist tightened. He didn’t know Percy as well as he’d like to, but that didn’t change the fact that he was his crewmate. He was his family. They were on this quest together, and if this monster was threatening his family, Leo was going to destroy her. He wanted to jump over the boulder and boil the monsters alive with his fire… But he doubted he’d be able to take them all on. “Believe me,” the mall girl continued. “Gaea has called us, and we’re going to have so much fun. Before this war is over, mortals and demigods will tremble at the sound of my name- Kelli!” Leo huffed to himself. Kelli sounded like a fitting name. The worst girls always had names beginning with Ks. Khinoe, Kelli…<br/>
</p><p>The creatures shuffled off, some curses thrown in Kelli’s direction. Their voices got fainter, and Leo poked his head out from behind the boulder, gesturing for Frank to stay seated. A few yards away, five women staggered along on mismatched legs- a shaggy clove-hoof on the right, and beautifully crafted mechanical leg on the left. Their hair was made of fire, their skin white as bones. They all wore tattered Ancient Greek dresses, except for the one in front, who Leo guessed was Kelli, who wore a burned and torn blouse with a short pleated skirt… A cheerleading outfit. That seemed highly impractical.<br/>
</p><p>Leo recognised the monsters, which surprised him. He always sucked at monster identification. But these ones, empousai, had fascinated him. He spent a week trying to make a mechanical leg to figure out the logistics of one. And after being charmspoken one too many times, he’d become weary of charmspeaking enemies.<br/>
</p><p>Frank rose once the empousai had faded into the grey mist as nothing more than silhouettes. “They’re heading for the Doors of Death,” he murmured. “You know what that means?”<br/>
</p><p>Leo didn’t want to think about it, but this squad of flesh-eating-horror-show women might be the closest to good luck they were going to get in Tartarus. Certainly matched the rest of Leo’s luck. “Yeah,” he said. “We need to follow them.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Annabeth</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Annabeth spent the night wrestling with a forty-foot tall Athena.<br/>
</p><p>Ever since they’d brought the statue on board, she’d been obsessed with figuring out how it worked. Any time she had away from the helm, she was down in the stables, inspecting the ivory. She was sure it was more than just a giant monster detector. There had to be a secret switch or a pressure plate, or something.<br/>
</p><p>She was supposed to be sleeping, but she just couldn’t. She spent hours crawling over the statue, grateful her foot was mostly healed now. The statue took up most of the lower deck. Athena’s feet stuck into the sick bay, so Annabeth had to regularly squeeze past the ivory toes if she wanted Advil. The body ran the length of the port corridor, outstretched hand jutting into the engine room, as if offering the figure of Nike to it. Athena’s serene face took up most of the stables, which were fortunately unoccupied. She couldn’t imagine Blackjack would be very happy staying in a stall with an oversized goddess.<br/>
</p><p>The statue was wedges tight into the corridor, so she had to climb over the top and wiggle under limbs to get past, searching for levers and buttons. Like the last time, she found nothing.<br/>
</p><p>In all of her inspection, Annabeth had only concluded things that didn’t seem to do any good. It was made from a hollow wooden frame, covered in ivory and gold, which explained why it was so light. It was in pretty good condition, considering it was more than two thousand years old, had been pillaged from Athens, toted to Rome, and secretly stored in a spider’s cavern for the last two millennia. Magic had probably kept it intact. That, and good craftsmanship.<br/>
</p><p>The statue was the key to defeating Gaea, Annabeth knew that much. It could heal the rift between Greek and Roman demigods. But there had to be more to it than just symbolism. Annabeth wasn’t sure she could cope if she had nearly died in that cavern and lost Leo and Frank for a symbol of peace, and nothing more concrete.<br/>
</p><p>But the more she examined it, the more frustrated she got. The Athena Parthenos radiated magic, she could feel it. But it didn’t seem to do anything but look impressive. Maybe a little disappointed in Annabeth.<br/>
</p><p>The ship careened to one side, and Annabeth felt her stomach turn. She resisted the urge to run to the helm, to help, to do something useful to get her mind off this statue. But she knew Percy wouldn’t let her back at the wheel. He thought she was resting.<br/>
</p><p>Percy, Jason, and Hazel were on duty, and Hazel had insisted that Annabeth rest. She wanted to take the wheel to guide them through the secret pass that the magic goddess had told her about.<br/>
</p><p>She hoped Hazel was right about the long detour north. She didn’t trust Hecate. Annabeth didn’t exactly have a good record with goddesses being the kindest. Aphrodite had played with her and Percy’s love life far too much, Athena ignored her more often than not, and Hera was insufferable. She didn’t see why a goddess would suddenly decide to be helpful.<br/>
</p><p>Of course, she didn’t trust most magic. She got on with her wits and plans, with her strength. Unlike other demigods, she didn’t have any magical talents that she could rely on. Maybe that’s why she was having so much trouble with the Athena Parthenos. It had no moving parts. Whatever it did, it operated on pure magic, and she didn’t appreciate that. She wanted it to make sense, like a machine.<br/>
</p><p>She eventually got too exhausted to think straight, which was generally what Annabeth appreciated. If she held out on sleep until the last possible moment, the dreams didn’t happen as often. It was a trick Luke had taught her while they were on the run.<br/>
</p><p>She clambered over the arm of the statue and curled up with a blanket in the engine room. She wasn’t sure how the blanket got there, but she bet it was Leo. In the back of her mind, she thanked him. Even with her foot mostly healed, she didn’t think she’d have the strength to get back to her quarters without help, and she really didn’t want to ask Percy. Besides, in the caverns, she’s slept in much more uncomfortable places.<br/>
</p><p>The hum of the generators reminded her of the hum of the commuters and projectors in the Athena cabin, and put her at ease. Buford the mechanical table (Percy had introduced her when he went out with the laundry) sat in the corner on sleep mode, making little steamy snores: shhh, pfft, shhh, pfft. It made her heart hurt, listening to it. Not knowing if Leo would ever be back to finish the flying table or repair the engines again.<br/>
</p><p>She pushed the thought out of her mind and pulled the blanket up to her chin. With one hand, she patted the ground around her, checking for spiders, even though she knew there were none there. When her heart stopped racing, she took a deep breath and closed her eyes, almost instantly falling into sleep. Unfortunately, her trick hadn’t worked. She slipped straight into a dream. </p><p>----------
</p><p>    She was running through camp, looking for someone. Looking for Percy. Her heart sank with every step. She knew he wasn’t there, but she couldn’t stop searching, hoping that by some miracle, he’d appear in front of her. She stumbled over tree roots poking out of the ground, knocked over carefully lined up practice swords. In the distance, by the lake, she could see the outline of Percy, glowing a faint blue, and her heart lifted. He was holding out his arms, ready to pull her into a hug, and she started sprinting towards him. The closer she got, though, the more her ankle began to throb. Time seemed to slow down, and she didn’t seem to be getting any closer to him.<br/>
</p><p>The ground parted and swallowed her up. Annabeth fell back into the webbed cavern of Arachne. In front of her, a looming figure- a woman in robes of dry, swirling earth, face covered in a veil of dust. Gaea’s laugh echoed around the cavern.<br/>
</p><p>“Where are you going, my sacrifice?” Gaea asked. “Stay, and meet my favourite son.” Annabeth clambered to her feet and cried out. It felt as if her ankle had completely been rebroken. Gaea let out another chilling laugh. “I warned you, my sacrifice. Your death is near, Annabeth Chase.”<br/>
</p><p>Annabeth gritted her teeth and turned, sprinting. She could see an open tunnel, and her heart fluttered. The tunnel wasn’t collapsed. She could make it. Then a figure stepped in front of the tunnel- a colossal being wrapped in shadows, it’s shape vaguely humanoid, it’s head almost scraping the ceiling twenty feet above.<br/>
</p><p>Instinctively, Annabeth reached for her knife and threw it at the figure without stopping. But the knife was consumed by the darkness, never even making contact with the figure. Annabeth tried to speak, say anything that might save her life. But she couldn’t make a sound, as if all the air had been stolen from her lungs. As she tried to form a plan, her thoughts simultaneously moved too fast and too slow.<br/>
</p><p>“My son will not allow any escapees tonight,” Gaea said from the depths of the cavern. Annabeth could feel the smugness in her voice. “He is the void that consumes all magic, the cold that consumes all fire, the silence that consumes all speech, the fear that consumes all thought.”<br/>
</p><p>Annabeth didn’t have her dagger, and she didn’t have a plan. So she found herself moving without commanding her feet to, ducking under the shadowy giant’s grasping hands, and ran out through the tunnel.<br/>
</p><p>She found herself back at Camp Half-Blood, except now the camp was in ruins. The cabins were charred husks. Burned fields smoldered in the moonlight. The smell of boiling strawberries was overwhelming. The dining pavilion had collapsed into a pile of white rubble, and the Big House was on fire, it’s windows glowing like eyes.<br/>
</p><p>But Annabeth couldn’t stop. She could still feel the presence of the giant behind her- the presence of something large, dark, and full of hate.<br/>
</p><p>She wove around bodies of Greek and Roman demigods. Choked sobs clawed their way out of her chest as she recognised some-,  Connor and Travis, Reyna, Thalia… She wanted to help them. These people were her family. But she knew, somehow, that she was running out of time.<br/>
</p><p>She ran towards the only living people she saw, a group of Romans standing at the volleyball pit, her foot throbbing and feeling like it could fall off at any minute. Two centurions leaned casually in their javelins, chatting with a tall, skinny blonde guy in a purple toga. They didn’t seem to have noticed Annabeth, or if they had, they didn’t think she was worth the trouble.<br/>
</p><p>As she got closer, Annabeth stumbled over her own feet. In the purple toga, she recognised him as Octavian, the augur from Camp Jupiter, who had been so insistent about war, about not working with the Greeks.<br/>
</p><p>Octavian turned to face her, and Annabeth felt the urge to pull back and take a swing, but he seemed to be in a trance. His features were slack, his eyes closed, similar to when Rachel spouted a prophecy. When he spoke, it was in Gaea’s voice. “This cannot be prevented,” Gaea-Octavian gestured around at the camp. “The Romans move east from New York. They advance on your camp, and nothing can slow them down.”<br/>
</p><p>Annabeth kept running.<br/>
</p><p>She climbed Half-Blood Hill. At the summit, lightning had splintered the giant pine tree, and Annabeth could feel more sobs clawing at her throat. She came to a stop, running a gentle and over the bark. When she looked back up, her breath faltered. The back of the hill was shorn away. Beyond it, the entire world was gone. Annabeth saw nothing but clouds far below- a rolling silver carpet under the dark sky.<br/>
</p><p>“Well?” Annabeth flinched as a sharp voice met her ears. She turned back to the shattered pine tree, where a woman knelt at a cave entrance that had cracked open between the tree’s roots. She was sure the cave wasn’t there before.<br/>
</p><p>The woman wasn’t Gaea. She looked like a living Athena Parthenos, but not quite like the real Athena, She wore the same golden robes as the statue, with the same bare ivory arms. When she rose, Annabeth felt the power radiating off her, and stepped back, almost stumbling off the edge of the world.<br/>
</p><p>Her face was regally beautiful, with high cheekbones, large dark eyes, and braided licorice coloured hair piled in a fancy Greek hairdo, set with a spiral of emerals and diamonds that Aphrodite would be jealous of. Her expression was one of pure hatred, and made Annabeth’s skin crawl. Her lip was curled, her nose wrinkled.<br/>
</p><p>“Annabeth Chase,” She sneered. “You are no threat, but I suppose my vengeance must start somewhere. Make your choice.” Annabeth tried to speak, but no words would come out. Though she knew this wasn’t really Athena, just seeing her likeness staring at her with such disdain made her want to cry. Between this goddess of hatred and the giant chasing her, she didn’t know what to choose.<br/>
</p><p>“He’ll be here soon,” she warned. “My dark friend will not give you the luxury of choice. It’s the cliff or the cave, child!”<br/>
</p><p>It clicked. Annabeth suddenly understood what she meant. She was cornered. She could jump off the cliff, but that was suicide. Even if there was land under the clouds, she would die in the fall. Or maybe she would just keep falling forever.<br/>
</p><p>But the cave… She stared at the dark opening between the tree roots. It smelled of rot and death, a smell she was all too familiar with. She heard bodies shuffling inside, voices whispering in the shadows. Spiders crept out of the shadows. The cave was the home of the dead. If she went inside, she would never come back.<br/>
</p>
<p>“Yes,” the woman said. Around her neck hung a strange bronze-and-emerald pendant, like a circular labyrinth. Her eyes burned with anger, and Annabeth finally understood why mad was a synonym for crazy. This lady had been driven insane by hatred. “The House of Hades awaits. You will bet the first puny rodent to die in my maze. You have only one chance to escape, Annabeth Chase. Take it.” She gestured to the cliff.<br/>
</p><p>Annabeth had never been one to suck up to the gods. She always said what she thought about them, no matter how disrespectful, which tended to get her in a lot of trouble. So she didn’t even think when she said, “you’re insane.”<br/>
</p><p>The woman seized her wrist, look of hate turning to a crazed smile. “Perhaps I should kill you now, before my dark friend arrives?” Steps shook the hillside. The giant was coming, wrapped in shadows, huge and heavy and bent on murder. “Have you heard of dying in a dream, child? It’s possible, at the hands of a sorceress!”<br/>
</p><p>Annabeth’s arm started to smoke. The woman’s touch was acid. She tried to free herself, but her grip was like steel. She opened her mouth to scream, the combined pain of her ankle and the acid on her arm almost unbearable. The massive shape of the giant loomed over her, obscured by layers of black smoke.<br/>
The giant raised a fist, and a voice cut through her dream.<br/>
</p><p>“Annabeth!” Percy was shaking her shoulder. “Annabeth, hey, are you okay?”<br/>
</p><p>Her eyes fluttered open. She could still feel the stinging on her arms, and her foot still throbbed. She didn’t tell Percy any of this. Nightmares were normal for demigods, Percy didn’t need her complaining about her’s. She just nodded. He looked unconvinced, but didn’t press it.<br/>
</p><p>That was one thing Annabeth had always loved about Percy. He never pushed her to talk. Just let her come to him at her own time.<br/>
</p><p>“You were supposed to be resting,” he said instead, looking around at the engine room disapprovingly. Annabeth felt her cheek flush in embarrassment, but she just shrugged.<br/>
</p><p>“I was until you woke me up.” He rolled his eyes, a fond smile tugging at his lips. “Now come on, Seaweed Brain. I know you didn’t just wake me up to scold me.”<br/>
</p><p>Percy’s mouth fell back into a neutral frown, his eyes level and serious. It made Annabeth uncomfortable, seeing him this serious. It meant he probably had bad news to share. “We made it through the mountains,” he said. “We’re almost to Bologna. You should join us in the mess hall. Nico has new information.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Jason</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Leo had designed the mess hall’s walls to show real-time scenes from Camp Half-Blood. Jason had thought it was an awesome idea at the time. Now, he wasn’t so sure.<br/>
</p><p>The scenes from camp- the campfire sing-alongs, dinners at the pavilion, volleyball games outside the Big House- it just seemed to bring everyone down. The farther they got from Long Island, the worse it got. The timezones kept changing, making everyone feel the distance every time they looked at the walls. Here in Italy, the sun had just come up, but at Camp-Halfblood, it was the middle of the night. Torchers were sputtering in cabin doorways. Moonlight glittered on the waves of the lake. The beach was covered in footprints, as if a big crowd had just left.<br/>
</p><p>He supposed one had. Yesterday, or last night, had been the Fourth of July. They’d missed Camp Half-Blood’’s annual party at the beach with the firework that the Hephestus cabin always prepared. The entire ship had promised to themselves that they would do their best to watch the fireworks. Piper wanted to Iris call her cabin. Jason supposed that, in the panic of everything going on, they all spaced it.<br/>
</p><p>Jason decided not to mention it to the rest of the crew. He hoped everyone back home had had a good celebration. They needed something to keep their spirits up too.<br/>
</p><p>“So,” Jason started. “Now that we’re all here…”<br/>
</p><p>Percy and Jason each sat at the ends of the table. Leaders. They had both been acting praetors, and already fairly close to the Greek sides, which made them obvious choices. At least, to everyone else. Jason was used to being a leader, but with Leo missing, he felt as though he wasn’t capable. He had let his best friend fall into Tartarus. He was sure everyone at the table could tell he hadn’t slept well in days, and his hair was a mess. He hadn’t combed it in the past three days. If they could tell, no one said anything.<br/>
</p><p>To Percy’s right sat Annabeth. Usually Piper would sit next to Jason, but she was taking the helm with Coach Hedge. On Jason’s other side would be Leo, but…  It left Jason feeling isolated, and like everyone was watching him.<br/>
</p><p>Next to Piper’s empty chair sat Hazel. Her hair was tied back with a bandana, which gave him a clear view of her face. She looked exhausted, but Jason supposed that was to be expected. She had been up all night guiding the ship through the mountains. But besides that, her eyes were rimmed with red, as though she had been crying.<br/>
</p><p>Nico sat in the chair next to Hazel, the chair usually reserved for Frank. Whenever someone was absent from the mess hall, there was an unspoken rule to stick to your own seat. That hadn’t changed any when Frank and Leo went missing. In fact, it was only reinforced. But no one said anything as Nico sat down. Hazel looked like she could use the comfort, and Nico was probably best to do it.<br/>
</p><p>Jason wished silently that Piper was beside him. Her charmspeak always came in handy at these group meetings. She had a way of keeping things calm, and Jason definitely needed some calm. But he knew it was a good thing she was watching over Coach hedge. Now that they were in the ancient lands, they had to constantly be on guard. Jason was a little nervous to let Hedge fly solo. He was a little trigger-happy, and Jason didn’t think he could deal with the picturesque Italian countryside blowing up on top of everything else.<br/>
</p><p>“We’ve gotten some more information about the House of Hades,” Jason said. “Nico?”<br/>
</p><p>Nico sat forward, twisting his silver skull ring on his finger. “I communed with the dead last night.”<br/>
</p><p>Jason tried not to let it show how uncomfortable the casualness of Nico’s tone made him.<br/>
</p><p>“I was able to learn more about what we’ll face,” Nico continued. “In ancient times, the house of Hades was a major site for Greek pilgrims. They would come to speak with the dead and honor their ancestors. But, unlike a lot of other cultures' seasonal traditions to honor the dead, the House of Hades was open year-round. Pilgrims could actually speak to the ghosts. In Greek, the place was called the Necromonateion, the Oracle of Death. You’d work your way through different levels of tunnels leaving offerings and drinking special potions-”<br/>
</p><p>“Special potions,” Percy mumbled. “Yum.” Annabeth elbowed his ribs and Jason glared at him.<br/>
</p><p>“Nico, go on.”<br/>
</p><p>“The pilgrims believed that each level of the temple brought you closer to the Underworld, until the dead would appear before you. If they were pleased with your offerings, they would answer your questions, maybe even tell you the future.”<br/>
</p><p>Annabeth frowned and poked at her plate of scrambled eggs. “And if the spirits weren’t pleased?”<br/>
</p><p>“Some pilgrims found nothing,” Nico shrugged. “Some went insane, or died after leaving the temple. Others lost their way in the tunnels and were never seen again.”<br/>
</p><p>“The point is,” Jason said quickly, “Nico found some information that might help us.”<br/>
</p><p>“Yeah.” Nico didn’t sound very enthusiastic. “The ghost I spoke to last night… He was a former priest of Hecate. He confirmed what the goddess told Hazel yesterday at the crossroads. In the first war with the giants, Hecate fought for the gods. She slew one of the giants- one who’d been designed as the anti-Hecate. A guy named Clytius.”<br/>
</p><p>“Emanates darkness and hatred. Wrapped in shadows. Swallows up all magic,” Annabeth stated bluntly, still staring at her plate. Hazel whipped her head around, glaring at the other accusingly.<br/>
</p><p>“How did you know that?”<br/>
</p><p>Annabeth looked up and narrowed her eyes. “I had a dream.”<br/>
</p><p>That dissipated the tension. No one looked surprised. Nightmares were very common among demigods, especially about what was going on in the world.<br/>
The table was silent as Annabeth explained her dream. Jason felt himself drawn to look at the wall images as she described the ruins, but when he did, he felt sick. She described the dark giant, the strange woman on Half-Blood hill, the offerings of death.<br/>
</p><p>Jason pushed away his plate of pancakes. He didn’t feel very hungry anymore. “So the giant is Clytius. I suppose he’ll be waiting for us, guardian the Doors of Death.”<br/>
</p><p>Percy rolled up one of his blue pancakes and took a large bite- not a guy to let impending death stand in the way of breakfast. “And the woman in Annabeth’s dream?”<br/>
</p><p>Hazel winced slightly. “She’s my problem.” She passed a diamond between her fingers in a sleight of hand. “Hecate mentioned a formidable enemy in the House of Hades- a witch who couldn’t be defeated except by me, using magic.”<br/>
</p><p>“Do you know magic?” Percy asked.<br/>
</p><p>“Not yet.”<br/>
</p><p>“Ah…”<br/>
</p><p>Jason tried to think of something hopeful to say, something useful, but anything he thought of sounded condescending. “Any idea who she is?” He settled on.<br/>
</p><p>Hazel shook her head. “Only that…” She glanced at Nico, and some sort of silent argument was held between them. Jason had the feeling that the two of them had had private conversations about the House of Hades, and they weren’t sharing all the details. “Only that she won’t be easy to defeat.”<br/>
“But there is some good news,” Nico said. “The ghost I talked to explained how Hecate defeated Clytius in the first war. She used her torches to set his hair on fire. He burned to death. In other words, fire is his weakness.”<br/>
</p><p>Everybody turned to look at Leo’s empty seat. Jason knew, logically, that knowing the giant’s weakness was a good thing. But they didn’t have their firestarter, and without him, Jason wasn’t sure what they could do. He was pretty sure it would take more than a few matches to set that giant ablaze.<br/>
</p><p>“It’s a good lead,” he finally said, a sour taste in his mouth. “At least we know how to kill the giant. And this sorceress… Well, if hecate believes Hazel can defeat her, then so do I.”<br/>
</p><p>Hazel dropped her eyes to the diamond she was turning over in her fingers. “Now we just have to reach the House of Hades, battle our way through Gaea’s forces-”<br/>
</p><p>“Plus a bunch of ghosts,” Nico added grimly. “The spirits in that temple may not be friendly.” Jason could tell that Nico’s add ons didn’t improve the mood of the table.<br/>
</p><p>“-and find the Doors of Death,” Hazel continued. “Assuming we can somehow arrive at the same time as Frank and Leo and rescue them.”<br/>
</p><p>Percy swallowed a bite of pancake. “We can do it. We have to.” Jason admired his optimism. He wished he shared it.<br/>
</p><p>“So, with the detour,” Annabeth started, “I’m estimating four or five days to arrive at Epirus, assuming no delays for monster attacks and repairs.”<br/>
</p><p>Jason smiled sourly. “Yeah. That never happens.”<br/>
</p><p>Annabeth ignored him, turning to hazel. “Hecate told you that Gaea was planning to wake on August first, right? The Feast of Spes?”<br/>
</p><p>Hazel nodded. “Goddess of Hope. She wants to destroy all hope forever by waking that day.”<br/>
</p><p>Jason turned his fork over in his fingers. “Theoretically, that leaves us enough time. It’s only July fifth. We should be able to close the Doors of Death, then find the giants’ HQ and stop them from waking Gaea before August first.”<br/>
</p><p>“Theoretically,” Percy agreed. “But I’d still like to know how we make our way through the House of Hades without going insane or dying.”<br/>
Nobody volunteered any ideas.<br/>
</p><p>Little gems started to pop up on Hazel’s plate, a sign of her nerves. “Oh goodness, it’s July fifth. I hadn’t even thought of that…”<br/>
</p><p>Percy nodded. “Yeah. We missed the camp firework show last night.” Hazel shook her head.<br/>
</p><p>“No no, it’s not that.” She looked equal parts embarrassed and unnerved. “Frank… When we became friends, he told me a lot about his grandmother. Frank would always avoid the number seven, and when I asked why, he told me she said it was an unlucky number. A ghost number. Apparently, she didn’t like it when he told her there would be seven demigods on the quest. And… July is the seventh month.”<br/>
</p><p>Percy frowned. “But… But that’s just coincidence, right?”<br/>
</p><p>Hazel’s expression wasn’t very reassuring.<br/>
</p><p>“In ancient China,” Annabeth said, “People called the seventh month the ghost month. That’s when, supposedly, the spirit world and the human world were the closest. It doesn’t seem like much of a coincidence that we are looking for the Doors of Death during the ghost month.”<br/>
</p><p>Nobody said anything.<br/>
</p><p>Jason wanted to think that an old Chinese belief couldn't have anything to do with the Romans and the Greeks. The cultures were totally different. But Frank’s very existence was proof that the cultures were tied together. The Zhang family went all the way back to Ancient Greece. They’d found their way through Roman and China and finally to Canada.<br/>
</p><p>He didn’t want to think about the implications of seven demigods looking for the Doors of Death in the ghost month, if it did mean something.<br/>
</p><p>Jason pressed his hands against the arms against the wooden arms of his chair in an attempt to keep his arms from nervously sparking. “Let’s focus on the things we can deal with. We’re getting close to Bologna. Maybe we’ll get more answers once we find these dwarfs that Hecate-”<br/>
</p><p>The ship lurched as if it had hit an iceberg. Jason’s breakfast plate slid across the table. Nico fell backwards out of his chair and banged his head against the sideboard. He collapsed on the floor, a dozen magic goblets and platters crashing down on top of him. “Nico!” Hazel yelped, rushing to help him.<br/>
</p><p>“What-?” Percy tried to stand, but the ship pitched the other direction. He stumbled into the table and went face first into his girlfriend’s plate of scrambled eggs.<br/>
</p><p>“Look!” Jason pointed to the walls. The images of Camp Half-Blood were flickering and changing. Jason didn’t even know it was possible for the enchanted walls to show anything other than scenes from camp. Suddenly a huge, distorted face filled the entire port-side wall: crooked yellow teeth, a warty nose, and two mismatched eyes- one much larger and higher than the other. The face seemed to be trying to eat it’s way into the room.<br/>
</p><p>The other walls flickered, showing scenes from above deck. Piper stood at the helm, but something was wrong. From the shoulders down she was wrapped in duct tape, her mouth gagged and legs bound to the control console.<br/>
</p><p>At the mainmast, Coach Hedge was similarly bound and gagged, while a bizarre looking creature- a gnome/chimpanzee thing with poor fashion sense- danced around him, doing the couch’s hair in tiny pigtails with pink rubber bands.<br/>
</p><p>On the port-side wall, the huge ugly face receded so Jason could see the entire creature- another gnome chimp, in even crazier clothes. This one began leping around the deck, stuffing things in a burlap bag- Piper’s dagger, Leo’s scrolls. Then he pried the Archimedes sphere out of the command console.<br/>
</p><p>“No!” Hazel yelled.<br/>
</p><p>Jason could feel his blood boiling. “Piper!”<br/>
</p><p>“Monkey!” Percy yelled.<br/>
</p><p>“Not monkeys,” Hazel huffed. “I think those are the dwarfs.”<br/>
</p><p>“They’ve got Piper!” Jason yelled, and he ran for the stairs, his arms sparking.<br/>
</p><p>Jason was vaguely aware of Hazel shouting, “Go! I’ll take care of Nico!” Guiltily, Jason found he hadn’t even thought about turning back. Sure, he hoped Nico was okay, but he had his own things to worry about. Jason bounded up the stairs, Percy and Annabeth behind him.<br/>
</p><p>The situation on deck was even worse than he’d feared.<br/>
</p><p>Hedge and Piper were struggling against their duct tape bonds while one of the dwarfs danced around the deck, picking up whatever wasn’t tied down and shoving it in his bag. He was maybe four feet tall, even shorter than Coach Hedge, with bowed legs and chimp like feet, his clothes so loud it gave Jason vertigo. His green plaid pants were pinned at the cuffs, and held up with bright red suspenders over a striped pink and black woman’s blouse. He wore half a dozen gold watches on each arm, and a zebra patterned cowboy hat with a price tag still dangling from the brim. His skin was covered with patches of scraggly red fur, though ninety percent of it seemed to be concentrated in his eyebrows.<br/>
</p><p>Jason was just forming the thought Where is the other dwarf? when he heard a click behind him and realised he had led his friends into a trap.<br/>
</p><p>“Duck!” He hit the deck as the explosion blasted his eardrums. Jason decided that if he ever saw Leo again, he was going to have to kill him for leaving boxes of magical grenades where dwarfs could reach them.<br/>
</p><p>At least he was alive. Leo had been experimenting with all sorts of weapons based on the Archimedes sphere and the scrolls he had recovered in Rome. He’d built grenades that spray acid, fire, shrapnel, and buttered popcorn, and regular Leo fashion, and they had been a tremendous help in the mountains. Judging by the ringing in Jason’s ears, the dwarf had detonated a flash-bang grenade, which Leo had filled with a rare vial of Apollo’s music. It didn’t kill, but it left Jason feeling like he had just done a belly flop off the deep end.<br/>
</p><p>He tried to stand, but his limbs were useless. Someone was tugging at his waist. Maybe one of his friends trying to help him up? No. His friends didn’t smell like heavily perfumed monkey cages.<br/>
</p><p>He managed to turn over. His vision was out of focus, similar to when he would summon a large bolt of lightning. Everything was tinted pink. A grinning, grotesque face loomed over him. The brown-furred dwarf was dressed even worse than his friend, in a green bowler hat like a leprechaun’s, dangly diamond earrings, and a white-and-black referee’s shirt. He showed off the prize he had just stolen- Jason’s gladius- then danced away.<br/>
</p><p>Jason tried to grab him, but his fingers were numb. The dwarf frollicked to the nearest ballista, which his red-furred friend was priming to launch. The brown-furred dwarf jumped onto the projectile like it was a skateboard, and his friend shot him into the sky.<br/>
</p><p>Red Fur pranced over to Coach Hedge. He gave the satyr a wet kiss on the cheek, then skipped to the rail. He bowed to Jason, and did a backflip over the side.<br/>
</p><p>Jason managed to get us. Percy was already on his feet, stumbling and running into things as he tried to get to Annabeth. The flash grenade had hit her hard. She was sprawled out on the deck, her eyes rolled into the back of her head.<br/>
</p><p>“Piper!” Jason staggered to the helm and carefully pulled the gag out of her mouth. She fixed him with a glare.<br/>
</p><p>“Don’t waste your time on me!” She said. “Go after them!”<br/>
</p><p>At the mast, Coach Hedge mumbled, “HHHmmmmmhmmm!” Jason figured that meant “KILL THEM!” A fairly easy translation, seeing as most of the coach’s sentences involved the word kill.<br/>
</p><p>Jason glaced at the control console. The Archimedes sphere was gone. He put his hand to his hip, where his gladius should have been handing. His head started to clear, and his outrage came to a boil. Those dwarfs attacked his crew, his girlfriend. They took some of the last things they still had of Leo’s.<br/>
</p><p>Below him spread the city of Bologna- a jigsaw puzzle of red-tiled buildings in a valley hemmed by green hills. Jason could fly over that city to find the dwarfs somewhere in the maze of streets, but there was no way he could do it on his own. He wouldn’t have the energy.<br/>
</p><p>He turned to Percy, still knelt at Annabeth’s side. “You feeling good enough to go for a fly?” Percy looked up with a frown.<br/>
</p><p>“Sure, but-”<br/>
</p><p>“Good,” Jason said. “We’ve got some dwarfs to go after.” Percy looked at Annabeth worriedly.<br/>
</p><p>“Don’t worry,” Piper said. “I’ll look after her.”<br/>
</p><p>Percy looked between Annabeth and Piper, before relenting. “Alright. Let’s catch some monkey dudes.”<br/>
</p><p>----------<br/>
</p><p>Jason and Percy touched down in a big piazza lined with white marble government buildings and outdoor cafes. Bikes and Vespas clogged the surrounding streets, but the square itself was empty except for pigeons and a few old men drinking expresso.<br/>
</p><p>None of the locals seemed to notice the huge Greek warship hovering over the piazza, or the fact that Jason and Percy had just flown down, Percy wielding a bronze sword and Jason… Embarrassingly empty handed.<br/>
</p><p>“Where to?” Percy asked.<br/>
</p><p>“I don’t know.” He looked up at the ship, trying to get his bearings. He pointed across the piazza. “The ballista fired the first dwarf in that direction, I think. Come on.”<br/>
</p><p>They waded through a lake of pigeons, then maneuvered down a side street of clothing stores and gelato shops. The sidewalks were lined with white columns covered in graffiti. A few panhandlers asked for change (Italian was very similar to Latian, so Jason could pick out a few works. He figured that even if he couldn’t, he would have gotten the message just fine).<br/>
</p><p>Jason kept finding his hand reaching at his waist for his gladeus, as if it would magically reappear. Without it, he felt defenseless, and he hated feeling like that. It was almost like he’s had his memories stolen all over again.<br/>
</p><p>Percy placed a reassuring hand on Jason’s shoulder. “We’ll find it.”<br/>
</p><p>Jason hoped he was right. But really, it wasn’t his sword he was worried about. Piper’s dagger, the Archimedes sphere and scrolls… those were what really worried Jason. He could always get another sword. But Piper’s dagger had helped them avoid so many problems, and he refused to lose the sphere. Hazel had told him what Leo had given up for that thing, and Jason wasn’t going to let it go so easily.<br/>
</p><p>They arrived in a smaller piazza. Jason grabbed Percy’s arm, stopping him from walking. “Check it out.” In the middle of piazza was a huge bronze statue of Neptune, naked in regular Roman fashion.<br/>
</p><p>“Ah, jeez.” Percy averted his eyes, looking mildly embarrassed.<br/>
</p><p>The sea god stood on a big marble column in the middle of a fountain that wasn’t working, which Jason found ironic. On either side of the statue, little winged cherubs sat nonchalantly. Neptune himself was throwing his hip up to one side, gripping his trident loosely in his right hand and left hand stretched out like he was blessing Jason.<br/>
</p><p>“Some kind of clue?” Percy asked. Jason frowned.<br/>
</p><p>“Maybe, maybe not. There are statues of gods all over the place in Italy. I’d just feel better if we ran across Jupiter. Or Minerva. Anybody but Neptune, really.”<br/>
</p><p>Percy fixed him with a glare. “What’s wrong with Neptune?”<br/>
</p><p>“Romans were always scared of the sea. Romans see him as a god to be feared, not loved.” Jason shrugged. “I don’t know how it is for the Greeks.”<br/>
</p><p>Percy climbed into the dry fountain. He put his hand on the bottom, frowning as he did so. “I can’t sense any water under here. It’s not just that the fountain isn’t working, it’s completely dry. It’s like… It’s hollowed out underneath. Removed all the piping and water, just an empty space.”<br/>
</p><p>“A secret lair?” Jason asked.<br/>
</p><p>“Ooooo!” Shrieked a nearby voice. “Secret lair?”<br/>
</p><p>“I want a secret lair!” Yelled another voice from above.<br/>
</p><p>Percy stepped back, his sword ready, Jason almost got whiplash trying to look two places at once. The red-furred dwarf in the cowboy hat was sitting about thirty feet away at the nearest cafe table, sipping an expresso held in his monkey-like foot. The brown-furred dwarf in the green bowler was perched on the marble pedestal at Neptune’s feet, just above Jason’s head.<br/>
</p><p>“If we had a secret lair,” said Red Fur, “I would want a firehouse pole.”<br/>
</p><p>“And a waterslide!” Said Brown Fur, who was twisting the Archimedes sphere like a circular rubix cube. Jason glared, fingers crackling.<br/>
</p><p>“Stop that. Give it back-”<br/>
</p><p>“Now now!” Interrupted Brown Fur. “We haven’t even introduced ourselves. I’m Akmon. And my brother over there-”<br/>
</p><p>“Is the handsome one!” The red-furred dwarf lifted his expresso. Judging by his dilated eyes and maniacal grin, he didn’t need any more. “Passalos! Singer of songs! Drinker of coffee! Stealer of shiny stuff!”<br/>
</p><p>“Please!” Shrieked Akmon. “I steal much better stuff than you.”<br/>
</p><p>Passalos snorted into his coffee. “Stealing naps, maybe.” He took out a knife- Piper’s knife- and started picking his teeth with it.<br/>
</p><p>“Hey! That’s my girlfriend’s knife!” He lunged at Passalos, but the red-furred dwarf was too quick. He sprang from his chair, bounced off Jason’s head, did a flip, and landed next to Percy.<br/>
</p><p>“Save me?” The dwarf pleaded. Percy slashed at him with his sword, and the dwarf shrieked, running away. Jason was quick to get back to his feet and he cornered Passalos, who clung to his waist. Jason tried to shove him off, but the dwarf did a backwards somersault and landed out of reach. Jason’s pants promptly fell around his knees.<br/>
</p><p>He stared at Passalos, who was now grinning and holding a small strip of metal. Somehow, the dwarf had stolen the zipper right off Jason’s pants.<br/>
</p><p>“Give- zipper!” Jason stuttered, a few unflattering Latin swears thrown in for good measure as he hoisted up his pants.<br/>
</p><p>Percy lunged with his sword. Passolos launched himself straight up and suddenly was sitting on the statue’s pedestal next to his brother.<br/>
</p><p>“Tell me I don’t have moves,” Passalos boasted.<br/>
</p><p>“Okay,” Akmon said. “You don’t have moves.”<br/>
</p><p>“Bah!” Passalos sais. “Give me the shiny ball. I want to see.”<br/>
</p><p>“No!” Akmon elbowed him away. “You got the knife and sword.”<br/>
</p><p>“Yes,” Passalos agreed. “The knife is nice.” He took off his cowboy hat and, like a magician producing a rabbit, pulled out Piper’s knife. Jason had never even seen him put it away.<br/>
</p><p>“Who are you two anyways?” Percy asked.<br/>
</p><p>“The Kerkopes!” Akmon narrowed his eyes at Jason. “I bet you’re a son of Jupiter, eh? I can always tell.”<br/>
</p><p>“Just like Black Bottom,” Passalos agreed.<br/>
</p><p>“Black Bottom?” Jason asked.<br/>
</p><p>“Yes, you know.” Akmon grinned. “Hercules. We called him Black Bottom because he used to go around without clothes. He got so tan that his backside, well-”<br/>
</p><p>“At least he had a sense of humor!” Passalos complained. “He was going to kill us when we stole from him, but he let us go because he liked our jokes. Not like you two. Grumpy, grumpy!”<br/>
</p><p>“Hey, I’ve got a sense of humor,” Percy snarled. “Give me back our stuff, and I’ll tell you a joke with a good punch line.”<br/>
</p><p>“Nice try!” Akmon grinned. “We must be going now, Blue Bottom. Return our shinies to home!”<br/>
Blue Bottom?<br/>
</p><p>Jason glanced down. His pants had slipped around his ankles again, revealing his blue boxer shorts. “That’s it!” He shouted. “Our stuff. Now. Or I’ll show you how funny fried dwarf is.”<br/>
</p><p>His fingers crackled with electricity.<br/>
</p><p>“Now we’re talking,” Percy said. He closed his eyes, and Jason could feel a subtly shaking under his feet.<br/>
</p><p>“Oh, scary!” Akmon shrieked.<br/>
</p><p>“Yes,” Passalos agreed. “If only we had a secret lair to hide in.”<br/>
</p><p>“Alas, this statue isn’t the doorway to a secret lair. It had a different purpose.”<br/>
</p><p>Jason’s gut twisted. The electricity died on his fingers, and he realised something was very wrong. He yelled “Trap!” and dove out of the fountain. Unfortunately, Percy was too busy summoning the water from underground.<br/>
</p><p>Jason rolled on his back as five golden cords shot from the Neptune statue’s fingers. One barely missed his feet. The rest honed in on Percy, wrapping him up like a rodeo calf and hanging him upside down.<br/>
</p><p>“Bravo!” Akmon applauded from a nearby cafe table. “You make a wonderful pinata!”<br/>
</p><p>“Yes!” Passalos agreed. “Hercules hung us upside down once, you know. Oh, how wonderful!”<br/>
</p><p>Jason sent an arch of electricity towards Passalos, who was trying to juggle two pigeons and the Archimedes sphere.<br/>
</p><p>“Eek!” The dwarf jumped out of the way of the current, dropping the sphere and letting the pigeons fly.<br/>
</p><p>“Time to leave!” Akmon decided. He tipped his bowler hat and sprang away, jumping from table to table. Passalos glanced at the Archimedes sphere, which had rolled between Jason’s feet. He let his arms spark.<br/>
</p><p>“Try me,” he snarled.<br/>
</p><p>“Bye!” Passalos did a backflip and ran after his brother. Jason scooped up the Archimedes sphere and ran over to Percy, who was still hanging upside down, thoroughly hogtied except for his sword arm. He was trying to cut the cords with his bronze sword.<br/>
</p><p>“Hold on,” Jason said. “There had to be a release switch-”<br/>
</p><p>“Just go!” Percy said. “I’ll follow you when I get out of this.”<br/>
</p><p>“But-”<br/>
</p><p>“Don’t lose them!”<br/>
</p><p>The last thing Jason wanted was some alone time with the dwarfs, especially when he was practically defenseless, but the Kerkopes were already disappearing around the far corner of the piazza. Jason left Percy hanging and ran after them.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Jason</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The dwarfs didn’t try very hard to lose Jason, which made him suspicious. They stayed just at the edge of his vision as he floated on the air, scampering over red-tiled rooftops, knocking over window boxes, whooping and hollering and leaving a trail of stolen watches and necklaces from their burlap bags- almost as if they wanted Jason to follow.<br/>
</p>
<p>As he was turning a corner, he saw two ancient stone towers jutting into the sky, side by side, much taller than everything else in the neighborhood. The Kerkopes scaled the tower on the right. When they reached the top, they climbed around the back and disappeared.<br/>
</p>
<p>Jason cursed. Had they gone inside? He could see some windows at the top, covered with metal grates, but he doubted those would stop the dwarfs. He hovered for a moment, but the dwarfs didn’t reappear. Which meant Jason had to go after them.<br/>
</p>
<p>He knew he could do it, but his stomach churned at the thought. Without his gladius, he couldn’t channel his lightning as accurately, and those dwarfs were scarily fast. And if he were to just fly in, he figured the Kerkopes would just jump away before he could do anything.<br/>
</p>
<p>Still, he had to try. They had Piper’s knife, the scrolls… And supposedly something that would help them on their quest, according to Hazel.<br/>
</p>
<p>Jason scanned the neighborhood below him, trying to come up with a plan. Half a block down, a set of double glass doors opened and an old lady hobbled out, carrying plastic shopping bags.<br/>
</p>
<p>A grocery store…<br/>
</p>
<p>Jason patted his pockets. To his amazement, and relief, he still had some euro notes from Rome. Those dwarfs had taken everything except his money.<br/>
</p>
<p>Jason touched down in front of the store.<br/>
</p>
<p>He scoured the aisles, looking for things he could use to execute his gradually forming plan. He quickly discovered the store was less of a grocery story, and more of an all purpose store, which served his needs better. He ended up buying a plumbing tube and some aluminium foil, and a side bag to put the Archimedes sphere in. Jason quickly found everything he needed, including a laundry cord he could use as a belt. When he dumped his stuff on the register, the wide-eyed check out lady asked him a few questions that Jason managed to roughly translate. He pretended he didn’t understand and managed to pay, get a bag, and get out. He needed to get to the tower as quickly as possible.<br/>
</p>
<p>He ducked into the nearest doorway where he could keep an eye on the tower. He tore up the aluminum foil and crumpled it into rough balls, shoving them into the side bag. It took far longer than he would have liked, even though it only took a few minutes.<br/>
</p>
<p>Percy didn’t show. Maybe he was still tangled at the Neptune fountain, or scouring the streets looking for Jason. No one else from the ship came to help. It was probably taking them a long time to get all of those pink rubber bands out of Coach Hedge’s hair.<br/>
</p>
<p>That meant Jason only had himself, a bag filled with aluminium foil balls, and a copper pipe swung over his shoulder like a baseball bat.<br/>
</p>
<p>He took a running start towards the tower, jumping to lift off the ground. He rose steadily towards the barred window, pointing his copper pipe towards the window. The pipe concentrated the lighting and the bars burst into sizzling, melting bars of iron. He flew in, the pipe steaming in his hands and electricity sparking around him.<br/>
</p>
<p>The room was about the size of a broom closet, windows on the other walls still barred. Shoved in the corners were the treasure, necklaces and coins spilling all over the floor. Jason spotted his gladius, an old leather-bound book, and enough interesting looking mechanical devices to give Leo a headache.<br/>
</p>
<p>At first, he thought the dwarfs had left. Then a shower of cards and poker chips hit his head. He looked up. Akmon and Passalos were hanging upside down from the rafters by their chimp feet, evidently been playing antigravity poker. They threw their cards like confetti at Jason and broke out into applause.<br/>
</p>
<p>“I told you he’d do it!” Akmon shrieked with delight. Passalos shrugged and took off one of his gold watches and handed it to his brother.<br/>
</p>
<p>“You win. I didn’t think he was that dumb.”<br/>
</p>
<p>They both dropped to the floor. Passalos has Piper’s knife strapped to his waist- Jason had to resist the urge to luge for it.<br/>
</p>
<p>Passalos straightened his cowboy hat and kicked open the grate in the nearest window. “What should we make him blow up next, brother? The dome of San Luca?”<br/>
</p>
<p>Jason wanted to throttle the dwarfs, but he forced a smile. “Oh, that sounds fun. But, before you guys go, you forgot something shiny.”<br/>
</p>
<p>“Impossible!” Akmon scowled. “We were very thorough.”<br/>
</p>
<p>“You sure?” Jason held up his side bag with one hand. The dwarfs inched closer. As he had hoped, their curiosity was so strong that they couldn’t resist.<br/>
</p>
<p>“Look,” he said, pulling out a ball of aluminium foil. He tossed it to Akmon, who snatched it out of the air and turned it over in his hands curiously.<br/>
</p>
<p>“Give it to me!” Passalos shrieked, grabbing for the ball. Jason shot electricity towards the dwarfs, the lighting hitting the aluminum ball directly. The dwarfs yelps, dropping the aluminum as it shocked them. That small hesitation was all the opening Jason needed. He bent the winds around him into ropes and ordered them around the Kerkopes.<br/>
</p>
<p>“Not shiny!” Passalos wailed. “Not shiny at all!”<br/>
</p>
<p>After making sure they were securely bound, Jason dragged the dwarfs into one corner and began rifling through their treasures. He retrieved Piper’s dagger, his gladius, the scrolls, some of Leo’s prototype grenades, and a dozen other odds and ends the dwarfs had taken from the Argo II.<br/>
</p>
<p>“Please!” Akmon wailed. “Don’t take our shinies!”<br/>
</p>
<p>“We’ll make you a deal!” Passalos suggested. “We’ll cut you in for ten percent if you let us go!”<br/>
</p>
<p>“Afraid not,” Jason hummed. “It’s all mine now.”<br/>
</p>
<p>“Twenty percent!”<br/>
</p>
<p>Behind him, Jason could hear footsteps clambering up the tower’s staircase. Jason spun on his heel, gladius in his hand, sure security had heard the racket and was coming to toss him out. Instead, Percy came through the door, half panting with his sword raised. When he saw the Kerkopes in the corner, he raised a brow and lowered his sword slightly. “What-”<br/>
</p>
<p>“Wind ropes. Too strong to break, can’t be cut,” he explained. Percy nodded. “How did you find me?” He asked.<br/>
</p>
<p>“Uh, I followed the trail of shiny things. And I saw a random bolt of lightning. Thought it was a pretty fair bet it was you when there’s no clouds.”<br/>
</p>
<p>“Help me make sure I got everything.” He kept rummaging through the bags of treasures. He knew Hazel had said the dwarfs had a treasure that would help them on their quest, but he wasn’t sure what he was looking for. There were coins, gold nuggets, jewelry, paperclips, foil wrappers, cufflinks.<br/>
</p>
<p>He kept coming back to a couple of things that didn’t seem to belong, and it seemed that Percy did too. One Percy kept looking at was an old bronze plate. It was badly damaged, but Percy kept picking it up, looking at it in fascination.<br/>
</p>
<p>“Take it!” Passalos offered. “Odysseus made it, you know! Take it and let us go!”<br/>
</p>
<p>“Osysseus?” Jason asked. “Like, the Odysseus?”<br/>
</p>
<p>“Yes!” Passalos squeaked. “Made it when he was an old man in Ithaca. One of his last inventions, and we stole it!”<br/>
</p>
<p>“What is it?” Jason asked Percy.<br/>
</p>
<p>“It’s an astrolabe, an old navigation device from a ship. It’s missing a few pieces, I think, but…” Percy looked to the dwarfs. “How does it work?”<br/>
</p>
<p>“Oh, it doesn’t,” Akmon said. “Something about a missing crystal?” He glanced at his brother for help.<br/>
</p>
<p>“‘My biggest what-if,’” Passalos said. “‘Should have taken a crystal.’ That’s what he kept muttering in his sleep, the night we stole it.” Passalos shrugged. “No idea what he meant. But the shiny is yours! Can we go now?”<br/>
</p>
<p>Jason wasn’t sure why Percy wanted the astrolabe. It was obviously broken, and he didn’t get the sense that this was what Hecate wanted them to find. Still, he didn’t say anything when Percy slipped it into his jean pocket.<br/>
</p>
<p>He turned his attention to the other strance piece of loot- the leather bound book. It’s title was in gold leaf, in a language he couldn’t read, but nothing else about the book seemed shiny, He couldn’t see why the Kerkopes would want it. He didn’t take them for big readers.<br/>
</p>
<p>“What’s this?” He asked, holding it up to the dwarfs.<br/>
</p>
<p>“Nothing!” Akmon said. “Just a book. It had a pretty gold cover, so we took it from him.”<br/>
</p>
<p>“Him?” Percy asked.<br/>
</p>
<p>Akmon and Passalos exchanged nervous looks.<br/>
</p>
<p>“Minor god,” Passalos said. “In Venice. Really, it’s nothing.”<br/>
</p>
<p>“Venice.” Jason frowned at Percy. “Isn’t that where we’re supposed to go next?”<br/>
</p>
<p>“Yeah.”<br/>
</p>
<p>Jason examined the book. He couldn’t read the text, but it had lots of illustrations: scythes, different plants, a picture of the sun, a team of oxen pulling a cart. He didn’t see how any of this could be important, but if the book had been stolen from a minor god in Venice- the next place Hecate had told them to visit- then this had to be what they were looking for.<br/>
</p>
<p>“Where exactly can we find this minor god?” Percy asked.<br/>
</p>
<p>“No!” Akmon shrieked. “You can’t take it back to him! If he finds out we stole it-”<br/>
</p>
<p>“He’ll destroy you,” Percy guessed. “Which is what we’ll do if you don’t tell us, and we’re a lot closer.” He pressed the point of his celestial bronze sword against Akmon’s throat.<br/>
</p>
<p>“Okay, okay!” The dwarf shrieked. “La Casa Nera! Calle Frezzeria!”<br/>
</p>
<p>“Is that an address?” Jason asked.<br/>
</p>
<p>The dwarfs both nodded vigorously. “Please don’t tell him we stole it,” Passalos begged. “He isn’t nice at all!”<br/>
</p>
<p>“Who is he?” Jason asked. “What god?”<br/>
</p>
<p>“I-I can’t say!” Passalos stammered.<br/>
</p>
<p>“You’d better,” Percy warned.<br/>
</p>
<p>“No,” Passalos said miserably. “I mean, I really can’t say. I can’t pronounce it! Tr-Tri- It’s too hard!”<br/>
</p>
<p>“Truh,” Akmon said. “Tru-Toh- Too many syllables!” They both burst into tears.<br/>
</p>
<p>Jason didn’t know if the Kerkopes were telling them the truth, but it was hard to stay mad at weeping dwarfs, no matter how annoying or badly dressed they were.<br/>
</p>
<p>Percy lowered his sword. “What do you want to do with them, Jason? Send them to Tartarus?”<br/>
</p>
<p>“Please, no!” Akmon wailed. “It might take us weeks to come back!”<br/>
</p>
<p>“Assuming Gaea even lets us!” Passalos sniffed. “She controls the Doors of Death now. She’ll be very cross with us.”<br/>
</p>
<p>Jason looked at the dwarfs. He’d fought hundreds of monsters, and never before had he felt bad about dissolving them. But this was different. He had to admit, he kind of admired the little guys. In a weird way, they reminded him of Leo. They played pranks and liked shiny things. Killing them would just feel… wrong. Besides, Leo and Frank were in Tartarus right now, hopefully still alive, trudging towards the Doors the Death. The idea of sending these twin dwarfs to them, where monsters might not even be able to die, made Jason’s heart clench.<br/>
</p>
<p>He could imagine Gaea laughing at his weakness- a demigod too softhearted to kill monsters. He remembered Annabeth’s dream that she had recounted at breakfast: The Roman’s move east from New York, the Earth Goddess had said. They advance on your camp, and nothing can slow them down.<br/>
</p>
<p>“Nothing can slow them down,” Jason mused. “I wonder…”<br/>
</p>
<p>“What?” Percy asked.<br/>
</p>
<p>Jason looked at the dwarfs. “I’ll make you a deal.” Akmon’s eyes lit up.<br/>
</p>
<p>“Thirty percent?”<br/>
</p>
<p>“We’ll leave you all your treasure,” Jason said, “except the stuff that belongs to us, and the astrolabe, and this book, which we’ll take back to the god in Venice.”<br/>
</p>
<p>“But he’ll destroy us!” Passalos wailed.<br/>
</p>
<p>“We won’t say where we got it,” Jason promised. “And we won’t kill you. We’ll let you go free.”<br/>
</p>
<p>“Uh, Jason…?” Percy asked nervously.<br/>
</p>
<p>Akmon squealed with delight. “I knew you were as smart as Hercules! I will call you Black Bottom, the Sequel!”<br/>
</p>
<p>“Yeah, no thanks,” Jason said. “But in return for us sparing your lives, you have to do something for us. I’m going to send you to steal from some people, harass them, make life hard for them in any way you can. You have to follow my directions exactly. You have to swear on the River Styx.”<br/>
</p>
<p>“We swear!” Passalos said. “Stealing from people is our specialty!”<br/>
</p>
<p>“I love harassment!” Akmon agreed. “Where are we going?”<br/>
</p>
<p>Jason’s lips quirked up into a faint smile. “Ever heard of New York?”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Frank</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When he and Hazel had first gotten together, one of their first dates was a romantic walk around New Rome. Hazel had loved it, though she claimed it was just the “spending time together” that made it a good date.</p><p>Frank wondered if Hazel would consider a walk through Tartarus romantic. There was plenty of quality time to be spent together. 
    </p><p>Frank and Leo followed the River Phlegethon, stumbling over the glassy black terrain, jumping crevices, and hiding behind rocks whenever the girls, which Leo had helpfully informed him were empousai, slowed in front of them. 
    </p><p>It was tricky to keep far enough back to avoid being spotted, but close enough to keep the empousai in view through the dark, hazy air. Leo’s fire helped some, but it also served to make Frank nervous. He wasn’t exactly thrilled to have a fire-wielding demi-god to his right and a river of fire on his left.
    </p><p>Every breath was like inhaling sulfur-scented shards of glass. It dried their throat, and when they needed a drink, the best they could do was drink some of the liquid fire. 
    </p><p>At the very least, the Phlegathon did seem to be healing them. Frank’s ankle didn’t hurt nearly as bad as it had before, and he was able to hide his limp from Leo. He was no longer shivering from the river they had fallen into, which was good, but now he instead felt like he was burning up from the inside out. 
    </p><p>Leo looked better too. His hands, which had been torn to shreds, now only had faded scars that Frank could only see in the firelight. At some point, Leo had pulled out a strip of cloth from his toolbelt, and had tied it across his head like a makeshift sweatband. With all the sweat that kept getting into Frank’s own eyes, he was tempted to ask for one of his own. 
    </p><p>Physically, Frank felt better too, though his clothes looked like he’d been through a hurricane of broken glass. He was thirsty, hungry, and scared out of his wits (though he didn’t need to tell Leo that), but as terrifying and horrible as the firewater tasted, it seemed to be keeping him going. 
    </p><p>Despite everything, Frank was grateful. They were in Tartarus, and they had a slim-to-none chance of surviving, but thank the gods that Frank wasn’t stuck here alone. If it wasn’t for Leo, he would have died stupidly in the river of hopelessness. 
    </p><p>Time was impossible to judge. They trudged alone, following the river as it cut through the harsh landscape. He was grateful the empousai weren’t exactly speed walkers. They shuffled along slowly on their mismatched legs, hissing and fighting with each other. They apparently weren’t in a hurry to reach the Doors of Death. 
    </p><p>Once, the demons sped up in excitement and swarmed something that looked like a beached carcass on the riverbank. Frank couldn’t tell what it was- a fallen monster? An animal of some kind? It didn’t matter. The empousai attacked it with relish. 
    </p><p>When the demons moved away, Frank and Leo reached the same spot and found nothing but splintered bones and glistening stains drying in the heat of the river. Frank felt sick looking at it. He had no doubt the empousai would devour demigods with the same gusto. 
    </p><p>“Come on,” Leo said, already starting to walk away. “We don’t want to lose them.” 
    </p><p>After a few more miles, the empousai disappeared over a ridge. When Frank and Leo caught up, they found themselves at the edge of another massive cliff. The River Phlegathon spilled over the side in jagged tiers of fiery water-falls. The demons were picking their way down the cliff expertly, jumping from ledge to ledge like mountain goats. 
    </p><p>Frank’s heart crept into his throat. Even if he and Leo reached the bottom of the cliff alive, they didn’t have much to look forward to. The landscape below was a bleak, ash-grey plain bristling with black trees, like insect hair. The ground was pocketed with blisters. Every once in a while, a bubble would swell and burst, disgorging a monster like a larva from an egg. 
    </p><p>Frank suddenly wasn’t hungry anymore. 
    </p><p>All the newly formed monsters were crawling and hobbling in the same direction as the empousai- toward a bank of black fog that swallowed the horizon like a storm front. The Phlegathon flowed in the same direction until about halfway across the plain, where it met another river of black water- maybe the one they had fallen into. The two floods combined in a steaming, boiling whirlpool and flowed on as one toward the black fog. 
    </p><p>The longer Frank looked into the storm of darkness, the less he wanted to go into it. It could be hiding anything- an ocean, a bottomless pit, columns of fire, an army of monsters. But if the Doors of Death were in that direction, it was their only chance to get home. 
    </p><p>He peered over the edge of the cliff. 
    </p><p>“Do you think you can fly us down there?” Leo asked. Frank grimaced. Periodically, he had been attempting to transform. He hadn’t managed much of anything. He didn’t want to admit that, though. Leo’s powers seemed to be working just fine, and the last thing Frank wanted to be was dead weight. Instead, he scanned the sky.
    </p><p>“Maybe not a good idea.” He pointed up. Above them, dark winged shapes spiraled in and out of the blood red clouds. 
    </p><p>“Furies?” Leo asked. Frank shrugged. 
    </p><p>“Or some other kind of demon. Tartarus has thousands.”
    </p><p>“Including the kind that would spot us flying.” Leo guessed. “Okay. So we climb.” 
    </p><p>Frank coulding see the empousai below them anymore. They’d disappeared behind one of the ridges, but that didn’t matter. It was clear where he and Leo needed to go. Just follow the maggot monsters crawling over the plains of Tartarus and head towards the dark horizon. He was just brimming with enthusiasm for that. 
    </p><p>As they started down the cliff, Frank concentrated on the challenges at hand: keeping his footing, avoiding rock sides that would alert the empousai to their presence, and of course making sure he and Leo didn’t plummet to their deaths. 
    </p><p>About halfway down, Leo said, “Stop, okay? Just a quick break.” Frank looked at him, and saw Leo’s legs were shaking so badly he could barely keep himself upright. He cursed himself for not calling for a break earlier, guilt twisting his stomach.
    </p><p>They sat together on a ledge next to a roaring waterfall. Leo was laying down, heaving in sulfurous breaths as he shook from exhaustion. 
    </p><p>Frank wasn’t doing much better. His stomach felt as if it had shrunk to the size of a gumdrop. If they came across any more monster carcasses, he was afraid he might pull an empousai and devour it.
    </p><p>At least he wasn’t alone. He wasn’t the most fond of Leo, but there was no way he could have made it this far by himself. And as much as Frank hated Fates and prophecies, he had a feeling that this wasn’t coincidence. He and Leo were down here in Tartarus together for a reason. For some reason, it had to be them. Not just any two demigods. 
    </p><p>“It could be worse,” Frank ventured. He wasn’t sure why he was reaching out to Leo, trying to console him. Maybe the demigod had grown on him in the short time they were down here. Maybe it was just because he didn’t have anyone else to talk to. He supposed it didn’t matter, either way. 
    </p><p>“Yeah?” Leo asked. He had his eyes closed, and his head was reading on his hands behind his head. “How so, big guy?”
    </p><p>“We could’ve fallen into the River Lethe. Lost all our memories.” 
    </p><p>Leo scrunched his nose up at the idea and sat up. “Yeah. Amnesia… Not my favourite.” 
    </p><p>Silence fell between them. Frank gazed across the ashen plains. There were supposed to be even worse things in Tartarus than a few empousai. Titans, maybe bound in chains, or roaming aimlessly, or hiding in some of the dark crevices. In the Second Titan War, the Greek demigods had destroyed Saturn, but even his remains might be down here somewhere- a billion angry Titan particles floating through the blood coloured clouds or lurking in that dark fog. 
    </p><p>Frank decided not to think about that. He could happily go his whole life without ever seeing a spec of Saturn. 
    </p><p>He shook Leo’s shoulder gently. “We should keep moving. You want some more fire to drink?” 
    </p><p>Leo stuck out his tongue. “Ugh. Not particularly.” 
    </p><p>They struggled to their feet. The rest of the cliff looked impossible to descend- nothing more than a crosshatching of tiny ledges- but they kept climbing down. 
    </p><p>Frank’s body went on autopilot. His fingers cramped. He felt blisters popping up on his ankles where the back of his shoes rubbed. Every once in a while, he lost his sight because sweat kept falling into his eyes. He got shaky from hunger.
    </p><p>He wondered if they would die of starvation, or if the firewater would keep them going. He remembered the punishment of Tantalus, who’d been permanently stuck in a pool of water under a fruit tree, but couldn’t reach either food or drink because he killed his son Pelops to make a stew for the gods. Frank had never felt sorry for him before, he thought it was a fitting punishment, but now he was starting to sympathize. He could imagine what it would be like, getting hungrier and hungrier for eternity but never being able to eat now, all because of some self-righteous gods. 
    </p><p>Keep climbing, he told himself.
    </p><p>Cheeseburgers, his stomach replied. 
    </p><p>Shut up, he thought.
    </p><p>With fries, his stomach complained. 
    </p><p>A billion years later, with a dozen new blisters on his feet, Frank reached the bottom. He helped Leo down, and they collapsed on the ground.
    </p><p>Ahead of them stretched miles of wasteland, bubbling with monstrous larvae and big insect-hair trees. To their right, the Plegathon split into branches that etched into the plain, widening into a delta of smoke and fire. To the north, along the main route of the river, the ground was riddled with cave entrances. Here and there, spires of rock jutted up like exclamation points. 
    </p><p>Under Frank’s hand, the soil felt alarmingly warm and smooth. He tried to grab a handful, then realised that beneath a thin layer of dirt and debris, the ground was a single vast membrane… Like skin. 
    </p><p>He almost threw up, but forced himself not to. There was nothing in his stomach but fire. 
    </p><p>He didn’t mention it to Leo, but he started to feel like something was watching them- something vast and not necessarily good. He couldn’t zero in on it, because the presence was all around them. Watching wasn’t quite the right word, either. That implied eyes, and this thing was simply aware of them. The ridges above them now looked less like steps and more like rows of massive teeth. The spires of rock looked like broken ribs. And Frank had done pretty well in his Anatomy class, so if the ground was skin…
    </p><p>He forced those thoughts aside. This place was just freaking him out, screwing with his mind. That’s all it was. 
    </p><p>Leo stood, wiping the soot from his face. All he managed to do was smudge it under his eye and across his palm. He gazed towards the darkness on the horizon. “We’re gonna be completely exposed, crossing this plain.” 
    </p><p>About a hundred yards ahead of them, a blister burst on the ground. “Oh, yuck. Monster acne,” Leo said. A monster crawled it’s way out of the blister… A glistening seal-like being with a dog face and stunted human limbs. It managed to crawl a few yards before something shot out of the nearest cave, so fast that Frank could only register a dark green reptilian head. The monster snatched the squealing seal in its jaws and dragged it into the darkness. 
    </p><p>Reborn in Tartarus for two seconds, only to be eaten. Frank wondered if the monster would pop up some other place, and how long it would take for it to reform. 
    </p><p>He swallowed down the sour taste of rising bile and firewater. “Oh, yeah. This’ll be fun.” 
    </p><p>Leo helped him to his feet. He took one last look at the cliffs, but there was no going back. He would have given a thousand golden drachmas to be able to transform solidly enough to fly them back up to the tops of the cliffs, or across this stupid wasteland. 
    </p><p>They started walking, trying to avoid the cave entrances, sticking close to the bank of the river. 
    </p><p>They were just skirting one of the spires when a glint of movement caught Frank’s eye- something darting between the rocks to their right.
    </p><p>A monster following them? Or maybe it was just some random reformed, heading for the Doors of Death.
    </p><p>Suddenly, he remembered why they’d started following this route, and he froze in his tracks. He grabbed Leo’s wrist to stop him.
    </p><p>“The empousai. Where are they?” 
    </p><p>Leo scanned a three-sixty, eyes wide with alarm. 
    </p><p>Maybe the demons had been snapped up by that reptile in the cave. If the empousai were still ahead of them, they should’ve been visible somewhere on the plains.
    </p><p>Unless they were hiding…
    </p><p>Too late, Frank dropped Leo’s arm and reached for the bow slung on his back, before remembering it wasn’t there anymore. 
    </p><p>The empousai emerged from the rocks all around them- five of them forming a ring. A perfect trap. Leo lit his fingers, though Frank wasn’t sure what it could do against the demons. 
    </p><p>Kelli limped forward on her mismatched legs. Her firey hair burned across her shoulders like a miniature Plegathon waterfall. Her tattered cheerleader outfit was splattered with rusty-brown stains that Frank was pretty sure wasn’t ketchup. She fixed him with her glowing red eyes and bared her fangs. 
    “I told you I smelled demigods!” She said to the other empousai. “I had hoped it was Percy Jackson. Oh well. You’ll still make wonderful appetizers before I go to destroy him!”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Frank</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Frank’s stomach sunk as he watched the empousai. Despite their mismatched legs, he had a feeling that they could move fast when they wanted to.</p><p>“And you’re a Poseidon spawn!” She let out hissing laughter as she looked at Frank. “How awesome! Not as great as that Percy, but I’m sure he’ll still taste great.” 
</p>
<p>Frank tensed. He didn’t like the fact that Kelli’s sense of smell was so pronounced that she could tell, not only that he was a son of Mars, but a descendant of Poseidon. He didn’t know if it was just because empousai were just that powerful, or if Tartarus heightened the monsters’ senses, but he wasn’t a fan either way. 
</p>
<p>Frank tried to think. He and Leo stood shoulder to shoulder as they had many times before in battle. Instinctual battle stance. But neither of them were in good shape to fight. Frank was empty handed, and he wasn’t sure what Leo’s fire could do against the demons. They were hopelessly outnumbered, and there was nowhere to run. No help was coming. 
</p>
<p>Briefly, Frank considered if he could call for Gray. The skeleton soldier had been a gift from Mars and, theoretically, should still be in the Underworld. But would he hear Frank all the way in Tartarus? And even if he did, who’s to say Gray wouldn’t just kill them? It was very possible that the only keeping Gray civil was the spear that tied him to Frank. Without it, he could go rogue. No, he couldn’t put himself and Leo in danger like that on a hunch. 
</p>
<p>So, no help. Fighting was a longshot. 
</p>
<p>That left Frank’s least favourite tactic: trickery, talk, delay. He wasn’t good at that. His mind didn’t move fast enough. But he had to give it a try.
</p>
<p>“So…” He started, “I guess you’re wondering what we’re doing in Tartarus.” 
</p>
<p>Kelli snickered. “Not really. I just want to kill you.” 
</p>
<p>That would have been it, but Leo chimed in. “Too bad,” He said. “Because you have no idea what’s going on in the mortal world.”
</p>
<p>The other empousai circled, watching Kelli for a cue to attack. They chittered to each other, reminding Frank of the gossip of the Venus girls. The ex-cheerleader only snarled, baring her fangs. 
</p>
<p>“We know enough,” Kelli said. “Gaea has spoken.” 
</p>
<p>“You’re heading towards major defeat.” Leo sounded so confident. Frank was impressed. He didn’t know how Leo could keep his calm.He glanced at the empousai, one by one, fixing his glare on Kelli at the end. He pointed at her accusingly. “Miss Valley Girl claims she’s leading you to victory, but she’s lying. She’s gonna lead you into disaster.” Leo scoffed. “What can she do? She’s thousands of years younger than the rest of you. What does she know?” 
</p>
<p>The other empousai muttered to each other and shifted uneasily. 
</p>
<p>“Enough!” Kelli’s fingernails grew into long black talons. She glared at Leo as if imagining him sliced into small pieces. 
</p>
<p>“The boy lies,” Kelli snarled. “So the Titans lost last time. Fine! That was part of the plan to wake Gaea! Now the Earth Mother and her giants will destroy the mortal world, and we will totally feast on demigods!” 
</p>
<p>The other empousai gnashed their teeth in a frenzy of excitement. Frank had been trapped underwater with mermen who could tear him in half and sharks that could bite him into bits. That wasn’t nearly as scary as empousai ready to feed.
</p>
<p>He crouched, ready to attack, but how many could he dispatch before they overwhelmed him? He still wasn’t at full strength. He couldn’t change form easily without exerting himself to the point of exhaustion. It wouldn’t be enough, whatever he did. 
</p>
<p>“The demigods have united!” Leo yelled. “You better think twice before you attack us. Greeks and Romans will fight together. You don’t stand a chance!” 
</p>
<p>The empousai backed up nervously, hissing, “Romani.” 
</p>
<p>Frank guessed they’d experienced the Twelfth Legion, though as a member of the Fifth Cohort, Frank was probably on elephant duty at the time. Judging from their reactions, it hadn’t worked out for the empousai previously. 
</p>
<p>“Yeah, Romani.” Frank bared his forearm and showed them the brand he had gotten at Camp Jupiter- the SPQR mark and crossed spear and sword of Mars, and the two lines underneath. Leo grinned manically at the empousai and jabbed his thumb towards Frank.
</p>
<p>“You mix Greek and Roman, and you know what you get? You get BAM!” He lit his hand for emphasis, and the empousai scrambled back. One fell off the boulder where she’d been perched. That made Frank feel good, but they recovered quickly. 
</p>
<p>“Bold talk,” Kelli said, “For two demigods lost in Tartarus.” She hadn’t moved at all. Her arms were crossed over her chest. “Lower you fire, child of Hephaestus, and I’ll kill you quickly. Believe me, there are worse ways to die down here.”
 </p>
<p>“Wait!” Leo tried again. “Aren’t empousai the servants of Hecate?” Frank tossed Leo a look. He desperately hoped Leo was right. They couldn’t afford to be wrong.
Kelli curled her lip. “So?” 
</p>
<p>“So, Hecate is on our side now,” Leo said. “She has a cabin at Camp Half-Blood. Some of her demigod children live there! If you fight us, she’ll be pissed.” 
</p>
<p>Frank silently promised himself to apologize to Leo for everything he’d ever said if they made it out of this alive. He was brilliant.
</p>
<p>One of the other empousai growled. “Is this true, Kelli? Has our mistress made peace with Olympus?”
</p>
<p>“Shut up, Serephone!” Kelli screeched, turning on her heel. The demigods were momentarily forgotten. “Gods, you are so annoying!” 
</p>
<p>“I will not cross the Dark Lady.”
</p>
<p>Leo took the opening. “You’d all better follow Sera. She’s older and wiser.” 
</p>
<p>“Yes!” Serephone shrieked. “Follow me!” 
</p>
<p>Kelli struck so fast, Frank didn’t have the chance to steady his stance. Fortunately, she didn’t attack him. Kelli lashed out at Serephone. For half a second, the two demons were a blur of slashing claws and fangs. 
</p>
<p>Then it was over. Kelli stood triumphant over a pile of dust. From her claws hung the tattered remains of Serephone’s dress, slung over her shoulder like a purse. 
</p>
<p>“Any more issues?” Kelli snapped at the other empousai. “Hecate is the goddess of the Mist! Her ways are mysterious. Who knows which side she truly favors? She is also the goddess of the crossroads, and she expects us to make our own choices. I choose the path that will bring us the most demigod blood! I choose Gaea!” 
</p>
<p>Her friends hissed in approval. 
</p>
<p>Leo glanced at Frank, and he saw that he was out of ideas. He’d done what he could. Kelli had eliminated one of her own. Now, there was nothing left to do but to fight.
</p>
<p>Kelli turned on her heel back towards Frank and Leo, dropping the dress like it was as worthless as a used Kleenex. “For two years I churned in the void,” Kelli said. “Do you know how completely annoying it is to be vaporized, godlings? Slowly reforming, fully conscious, in searing pain for months and years as your body regrows, then finally breaking the crust of this hellish place and clawing your way back to daylight? All because some annoying little demigod stabbed you in the back?” 
</p>
<p>Her baleful eyes flitted between Leo and Frank. “I wonder what happens if a demigod is killed in Tartarus. I doubt it’s ever happened before. Let’s find out.” 
</p>
<p>Frank sprang, summoning enough strength to change his arm to a lion paw. He slashed at one of the empousai and cut her in half, but Kelli dodged and charged Leo. Even the small transformation drained Frank, and as the other two empousai launched themselves at him, he couldn’t move fast enough to attack. One grabbed his arm and rendered it immobile. Her friend jumped on his back. 
</p>
<p>Frank tried to ignore them and staggered towards Leo, determined to defend him, even if it brought him down. But Leo was doing pretty well. He was fast, and he tumbled to one side, evading Kelli’s claws, and came up with a rock in his hand, which he smacked into her nose. 
</p>
<p>Kelli wailed. Leo scooped up gravel and used his fire to heat it until it was glowing red, then flung it into the empousa’s eyes. 
</p>
<p>Meanwhile, Frank thrashed from side to side, trying to throw off his empousa hitchhicker, but her claws sunk deeper into his shoulders. The second empousa held his arm, preventing him from slashing at them. Even if she hadn’t been, his lion’s paw was rapidly changing back to it’s human form.
</p>
<p>Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Kelli lunge, raking her talons across Leo’s arm. Leo screamed and fell. 
</p>
<p>Frank stumbled in his direction. The empousai on his back sank her fangs into his neck. Searing pain coursed through his veins, and his knees buckled. 
</p>
<p>Stay on your feet, he told himself. You have to beat them.
</p>
<p>Then the other bit his arm, and he fell to the ground on his knees.
</p>
<p>That was it. Their luck had finally run out. Kelli loomed over Leo, savoring her moment of triumph. The other two empousai circled Frank as he held his arm, their mouths salivating, ready to devour him. 
</p>
<p>Then a shadow fell across Frank. A deep war cry bellowed from somewhere above, echoing across the plains of Tartarus, and a Titan dropped onto the battlefield. 
</p>
<p>Frank thought he was hallucinating. It just wasn’t possible that a huge, silvery figure could drop out of the sky and stop Kelli flat, trampling her into a mound of monster dust. 
</p>
<p>But that’s exactly what happened. The Titan was ten feet tall, with wild silver Einstein hair, pure silver eyes, and muscular arms protruding from a ripped up blue janitor’s uniform. In his hand was a massive push broom. His name tag, incredibly, read BOB. 
</p>
<p>Leo yelped and tried to crawl away, but the giant janitor wasn’t interested in him. He turned to the two remaining empousai, who stood over Frank. 
</p>
<p>One was foolish enough to attack. She lunged with the speed of a tiger, but she never stood a chance. A spearhead jutted from the end of Bob the Titan’s broom. </p>
<p>The last empousa tried to run. Bob threw his broom like a massive boomerang (broomerang?). It sliced through the demon and returned to Bob’s hand. 
</p>
<p>“SWEEP!” The Titan grinned with delight and did a victory dance. “Sweep, sweep, sweep!” 
</p>
<p>Frank couldn’t speak. He couldn’t believe that something good had actually just happened. Leo looked just as shocked. 
</p>
<p>“Wh- How?” He stammered.
</p>
<p>“I am Bob! Percy’s friend.” He looked at Leo, frowning when he saw his wounds. “Owie.” Leo flinched as the Titan knelt next to him. 
</p>
<p>“It’s okay,” Frank said. “He’s friendly.” At least, he thought so. He couldn’t see any reason why a malicious Titan would kill the empousai and leave them alive. And be Percy’s friend. 
</p>
<p>Bob simply tapped Leo’s forearm, and the skin started to mend itself. Leo looked at his arm with equal parts fascination and horror. Bob chuckled, pleased with himself, then bounded over to Frank and healed his bleeding neck and arm. The Titan’s hands were surprisingly warm and gentle. 
</p>
<p>“All better!” Bob declared, his eerie silver eyes crinkling with kindness. He scanned around the area, lips turning into a small frown. “Where’s Percy?” 
</p>
<p>“Percy?” Leo asked. 
</p>
<p>“Percy! I heard his name! Upstairs in Hades’ palace. Bob hears many things, but mostly they just call for Bob when there is a mess. Bob, sweep up these bones. Bob, mop up these tortured souls. Bob, a zombie exploded in the dining room.” 
</p>
<p>Leo gave Frank a puzzled look, but he didn’t have any explanation. 
</p>
<p>“Then I heard my friend’s name! Percy’s name! Where is he?” He started looking around again, his face similar to that of a small child. 
</p>
<p>“Uh… Percy isn’t down here…” Leo said. Bob turned to Leo, and his face fell creepily slack. None of the kindness he had shown before was present. 
</p>
<p>“No Percy…” Bob said. “Bob is needed at the palace.” He started to walk away. His large steps made him almost fade into the darkness instantly. Frank ran to catch up to him. 
</p>
<p>“Wait, Bob!” He called. “We’re Percy’s friends!” Bob turned and gave Frank a puzzled look. Leo nodded vigorously. 
</p>
<p>“Yeah, yeah! Me and Percy? We’re, like, best buds!” After a moment, Bob’s face changed again- his warm smile came back, and his eyes almost seemed to glow. 
</p>
<p>“Friends of Percy!” 
</p>
<p>“Yeah, we’re friends of Percy,” Frank said. “Look, we-”
</p>
<p>“Oh, time to talk later.” Bob’s expression turned serious. His eyebrows scrunched and he scanned around them. “We must go before they find you. They are coming. Yes, indeed.”
</p>
<p>“They?” Leo asked. 
</p>
<p>Frank scanned the horizon. He saw no approaching monsters- nothing but the stark grey wasteland. 
</p>
<p>“Yes,” Bob agreed. “But Bob knows a way. Come on, friends of Percy! We will have fun!”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Annabeth</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Annabeth woke up, her mind peacefully clear of nightmares, which puzzled her. There was rarely a night that she slept when she didn’t have some sort of nightmare. That wasn’t to say she didn’t have a dream at all, but it was tame, simple. One of her dad and her step-brothers, of being a normal family. Her hand automatically went to the college ring on her beaded necklace, and she thumbed over the inscription of her father’s name in the metal: Chase. 
	</p><p>She couldn’t remember the last time she had seen her dad. She had gone to visit her family after the war with Kronos, but when her step-mom started to blame her for all that had happened, Annabeth found she couldn’t stay, and she returned to camp before the summer had ended. She had intended to visit again, but with Percy going missing, with everything going on between the two camps, the idea was pushed to the back burner. 
	</p><p>Annabeth pushed herself up to sit on her bed. Instantly, she was hit with a wave of nausea. It was strange to her, considering that she rarely got sick, and whenever she did, it would pass quickly. This had been lingering for a few days, ever since the Athena Parthenos had been brought on board. It seemed like, anytime she was too far from the statute, she would be hit with sickness. She didn’t know exactly what was wrong, which was driving her nuts, and she figured that telling everyone else would accomplish nothing but worry everyone. And from listening to them talk, Annabeth was pretty sure they didn’t have the same problem she was facing.
</p><p>Which was just Annabeth’s luck. She had to pull it together. Her friends needed her- especially now, with Leo gone.  
</p><p>Despite it having been a couple days, she still couldn’t comprend everything that had happened. Before his disappearance, Annabeth had thought Leo as nothing more an annoyance. He reminded her a lot of how Percy acted when he was younger, but less attractive and more stupid jokes. But with him gone, she’d come to appreciate how much he raised morale and how brilliant his mind was. 
</p><p>With him gone, Annabeth was the next best engineer. They needed her for the trip ahead, if they ran into all the trouble they expected to. 
</p><p>Annabeth, with some force, rose and got dressed. Fortunately, she’d managed to buy some new clothes in Siena, replacing her disgusting torn and web covered outfit that she had managed to mostly scrub out in the sink. She tugged on some faded blue jeans and a plain grey t-shirt, with Siena written over the pocket in light blue. As she looked at herself in the floor length mirror in her room, she frowned. It felt strange not to wear her Camp Half-Blood shirt. She had been wearing those shirts since she arrived at camp at six. She felt almost like she was abandoning her camp. She shook the feeling off, and pulled her hair back into a loose pony-tail. In a last minute decision, she pulled on her baseball cap, the one Athena had given her, that was supposed to turn her invisible. It hadn’t worked since the gods had started splitting, and she didn’t expect it to work now, but she still felt a wave of disappointment come over her as she remained visible in the mirror. Regardless, she kept the cap on. At the very least, it would keep the flyaways out of her face. 
</p><p>She started to reach for her dagger on her dresser, only to find it’s spot empty. She winced slightly. She still hadn’t gotten around to replacing her dagger. She hadn’t exactly had time, and most tourist shops in Rome didn’t carry Celestial Bronze weapons. She needed to ask to borrow someone’s weapon until she got one of her own. 
</p><p>Given that Annabeth had woken up naturally, not to any sirens or shouts, Annabeth had a glimmer of hope that today might be a good day. Any easy day of travel.
</p><p>That hope was shattered as soon as she climbed above deck.
</p><p>----------
	</p><p>“What are they?” Hazel asked.
	</p><p>The Argo II was docked at a busy wharf. On one side stretched a shipping channel about half a kilometer wide. On the other spread the city of Venice- red tiled roofs, metal church domes, steepled towers, and sunbleached buildings in all the colours of candy Valentine hearts- red, white, ochre, pink, and orange. Annabeth was floored by the architecture.
	</p><p>Everywhere, there were statues of lions- on top of pedestals, over doorways, on the porticoes of the largest buildings. 
	</p><p>Where the streets should have been, green canals etched their way through the neighbourhoods, each one jammed with motorboats. Along the docks, the sidewalks were mobbed with tourists shopping at t-shirt kiosks, overflowing from stores, and lounging across acres of outdoor cafe tables. 
	</p><p>Everyone else wasn’t paying attention to any of that, though. They had gathered around the starboard rail to stare at the dozens of weird shaggy monsters milling through the crowds. 
	</p><p>Each monster was about the size of a cow, with a bowed back like a broken down horse, matted grey fur, skinny fur, and black cloven hooves. The creatures' heads seemed much too heavy for their necks. Their long, anteater-like snouts drooped to the ground. Their overgrown manes completely covered their eyes. 
	</p><p>Annabeth watched as one of the creatures lumbered across the promenade, snuffling and licking the pavement with it’s long tongue. The tourists parted around it, unconcerned. A few even petted it. Annabeth wondered what the mortals saw, when the monster’s appearance flickered. For a moment, it turned into an old, fat beagle. 
	</p><p>Jason grunted. “The mortals think they’re stray dogs.” 
	</p><p>“Or pets roaming around,” Piper said. “My dad shot a film in Venice once. I remember him telling me there were dogs everywhere. Venetians love dogs.” 
	</p><p>“But what are they?” Percy asked, repeating Hazel’s question. “They look like… Starving, shaggy cows with sheepdog hair.” They all looked to Annabeth, but she just shook her head. 
	</p><p>“I don’t know. I’ve never seen them before.” 
	</p><p>“Maybe they’re harmless,” Hazel suggested. “They’re ignoring the mortals.” 
	</p><p>“Harmless!” Gleeson Hedge laughed. The satyr wore his usual gym shorts, sports shirt, and coach’s whistle. His expression was as gruff as ever, but he still had one pink rubber band stuck in his hair from the prankster dwarfs in Bologna. “Levesque, how many harmless monsters have we met? We should just aim the ballistae and see what happens!” 
	</p><p>“Uh, no.” Percy said, fixing Hedge with a look. 
	</p><p>Annabeth agreed with her boyfriend. There were too many monsters. It would be impossible to target one without causing collateral damage in the crowd of tourists. Besides, if those creatures panicked and stampeded…
	</p><p>“We’ll have to walk through them and hope they’re peaceful,” Annabeth said, though she wasn’t a fan of the idea. “It’s the only way we’re going to track down the owner of that book.” 
	</p><p>Percy pulled the leather-bound manual from underneath his arm. He’d slapped a sticky note on the cover with the address the dwarfs in Bologna had given him, a few misspelled attempts scratched out. 
	</p><p>“La Casa Nera,” he read. “Calle Frezzeria.” 
	</p><p>“The Black House,” Nico di Angelo translated. “Calle Frezzeria is the street.” 
	</p><p>Annabeth tried not to flinch when she realized Nico was at her shoulder. The guy was so quiet and brooding, he almost seemed to dematerialize when he wasn’t speaking. 
	</p><p>“You speak Italian?” Jason asked. 
	</p><p>Nico shot him a warning look, one Annabeth was glad she wasn’t on the receiving end of, but he spoke calmly. “Annabeth is right. We have to find that address. The only way to do that is to walk through the city. Venice is a maze. We’ll have to risk the crowds and those… Whatever they are.” 
	</p><p>Thunder rumbled in the clear summer sky. They’d passed through some storms the night before. Annabeth had thought they were over, but now she wasn’t so sure. The air felt as thick and warm as sauna steam. 
	</p><p>Jason frowned at the horizon. “Maybe I should stay on board. Lots of venti in the storm last night. If they decide to attack the ship again…” 
	</p><p>He didn’t need to finish. They’d all had experiences with angry wind spirits. Jason was the one who had much luck fighting them. 
	</p><p>Coach Hedge grunted. “Well, I’m out, too. If you soft-hearted cupcakes are going to stroll through Venice without even whacking those furry animals, forget it. I don’t like boring expeditions.” 
	</p><p>“It’s okay, Coach,” Annabeth assured. She hadn’t expected him to participate anyways. 
	</p><p>“I should probably stay too,” Hazel said. “I want to work on controlling the Mist as much as I can before… y’know…” 
	</p><p>“Well…” Piper shifted her feet. “Whoever goes should be good with animals. I, uh… I’ll admit. I’m not great with cows.” 
	</p><p>Annabeth figured there was a story behind that comment, but she decided not to ask. 
	</p><p>“I’ll go,” she said. 
	</p><p>She wasn’t sure why she volunteered- maybe because she was anxious to be useful for a change. She had felt like she hadn’t done much of anything for the quest since she was rescued. At first, it made sense, because her ankle was broken, but her ankle was more than healed now. She was tired of the rest of the crew treating her like a piece of fragile glass. 
	</p><p>“I’ll go with Annabeth,” Nico offered. Piper gave a soft smile from where she stood, which Annabeth felt unsettled by, and Annabeth looked over her shoulder at Nico, raising a brow. 
	</p><p>“You’re… Good with animals?” 
	</p><p>Nico smiled without humour. “Actually, most animals hate me. They can sense death. But there’s something about this city…” His expression turned grim as he looked out over the edge to the roofs below. “Lots of death. Restless spirits. If I go, I may be able to keep them at bay. Besides, as Grace pointed out, I speak Italian.” 
	</p><p>Annabeth wasn’t sure what scared her more: shaggy-cow monsters, hoarders of restless ghosts, or going somewhere alone with Nico di Angelo. She had always gotten the impression that he didn’t much care for her, and he had changed so much from the Mythomagic loving kid she had wanted to protect so many years ago. 
	</p><p>“I’ll go too.” Percy wrapped an arm around Annabeth’s shoulders. “Three is the best number for a demigod quest, right?”
Nico’s stare hardened. 
</p><p>Annabeth tried not to look too relieved. She knew Percy still considered Nico as that little kid who needed his protection. She didn’t want to offend him, or Nico. But when Nico turned away to look over the edge again, she glanced at Percy and told him with her eyes: Thank you thank you thank you. 
</p><p>Nico stared at the canals, as if wondering what new and interesting forms of evil spirits might be lurking there. “All right, then. Let’s go find the owner of this book.” 
</p><p>----------
	</p>
<p>Annabeth had always wanted to visit Venice, but the experience was spoiled due to it being summer and tourist season, and the city being overrun with large hairy creatures. Between rows of old houses and the canals, the sidewalks were already too narrow for the crowds jostling one another and stopping to take pictures. The monsters made things worse. They shuffled around with their heads down, bumping into mortals and sniffing the pavement. 
	</p><p>One seemed to find something it liked at the edge of a canal. It nibbled and licked at a crack between the stones until it dislodged some sort of greenish root. The monster sucked it up happily and shambled along.
	</p><p>“Well, they’re herbivores,” Annabeth said. “That’s good news.” 
	</p><p>Percy slipped his hand into hers. “Unless they supplement their diet with demigods.” 
	</p><p>Annabeth instantly relaxed as she grabbed Percy’s hand. The crowds seemed to disappear, and the heat and monsters suddenly didn’t seem so bad. 
	</p><p>She didn’t need Percy to protect her, and she knew Percy knew that, but she had been alone under Rome so long that she had lost track of time. She didn’t think she would ever see her boyfriend again. And, a thought she hated that had crossed her mind, she worried that Percy might have fallen for Reyna in the time he was at Camp Jupiter. 
	</p><p>Having him by her side again eased the anxieties that had been welling in her stomach, some of which she hadn’t even been aware that had been brewing. 
	</p><p>Nico stopped. “There.” 
	</p><p>They’d turned onto a smaller street, leaving the canal behind. Ahead of then was a small plaza lined with five-story buildings. The area was strangely deserted- as if the mortals could sense it wasn’t sense. In the middle of the cobblestone courtyard, a dozen shaggy cow creatures were sniffing around. 
	</p><p>“A lot of cows in one place,” Percy said. 
	</p><p>“Yeah, but look,” Nico said. “Past that archway.” 
	</p><p>Nico’s eyes must have been better than hers. Annabeth squinted, and she wasn’t surprised why she hadn’t seen it immediately. At the far end of the plaza, a stone archway carved with lions led into a narrow street. Just past the arch, one of the town houses was painted black- the only black building Annabeth had seen so far in Venice. The house seemed to almost disappear into the shadows. 
	</p><p>“La Casa Nera,” she said. 
	</p><p>Nico nodded. He studied the town house windows, most of which were covered with wooden shadows. “I don’t like this place. This neighbourhood is filled with lemures.” 
	</p><p>“Lemurs?” Percy asked. “I’m guessing you don’t mean the furry little guys from Madagascar?” 
	</p><p>Annabeth felt a sudden urge to smack her boyfriend upside the head.
	</p><p>Nico didn’t seem to mind the question. “Angry ghosts,” he said. “Lemures go back to Roman times. They hang around a lot of Italian cities, but I’ve never felt so many in one place. My mom told me…” He hesitated. “She used to tell me stories about the ghosts of Venice.” 
	</p><p>Annabeth wondered about Nico’s past. She had for quite some time, but she had never bothered asking. Percy beat her to the punch.
	</p><p>“Nico, your mom was Italian?” He asked. “She was from Venice?” 
	</p><p>Nico nodded reluctantly. “She met Hades here, back in the 1930s. As World War Two got closer, she fled to the U.S. with… Bianca and me.” Annabeth saw Percy wince at Bianca’s name. “I don’t remember much about Italy,” Nico continued, “But I can still speak the language.” 
	</p><p>A beat of silence fell around the demigods. “Must have been hard on your mom,” Percy said. “I guess we’ll do anything for someone we love.” 
	</p><p>Annabeth envied Percy. His mother loved him, and his stepfather cared so much. Even Poseidon was there for him more than any other god was for their children Annabeth had seen. Annabeth had never had that. Her stepmother hated her, and her father didn’t seem to care. Athena ignored her at the best of times. But when Percy squeezed her hand, the jealousy melted away. Because she realised, she did have someone who would do anything for her. 
	</p><p>Nico stared at the cobblestones. “Yeah,” he said bitterly. “I guess we will.” 
	</p><p>Annabeth wasn’t sure what Nico was thinking. She had a difficult time imagining him acting out of love for anybody, except for Hazel. But it wasn’t her place to ask.
	</p><p>“So, the lemures,” Percy asked. “How do we avoid them?”
</p><p>“I’m already on it,” Nico said. “I’m sending out the message that they should stay away and ignore us. Hopefully that’s enough. Otherwise… Things could get messy.” 
</p><p>Annabeth pursed her lips. “Let’s get going.” 
</p><p>Halfway across the piazza, everything went wrong, but it had nothing to do with ghosts. 
</p><p>They were skirting the well in the middle of the square, trying to give the cow monsters some distance, when Annabeth stumbled on a loose piece of cobblestone. Percy caught her. Six or seven of the big grey beasts turned to look at them. Annabeth glimpsed a glowing green eye under one’s mane. Instantly, the nausea she had been feeling since leaving the ship and the Athena Parthenos doubled. She felt as though she was going to throw up all over her new clothes. 
</p><p>The creatures made deep throbbing sounds in their throats like angry foghorns. 
</p><p>“Nice cows,” Percy murmured. He put himself between the monsters and Annabeth and Nico. “Guys, I’m thinking we should back out of here slowly.” 
</p><p>“Sorry,” Annabeth whispered. She felt awful for putting their mission in jeopardy. 
</p><p>“It’s not your fault,” Nico said. “Look at your feet.” 
</p><p>Annabeth glanced down and her breath caught in her throat. 
</p><p>Under their shoes, the paving stones were moving- spiky plant tendrils were pushing up from the cracks. 
</p><p>Nico stepped back. The roots snaked out in his direction, trying to follow. The tendrils got thicker, exuding a steamy green vapor that smelled disturbingly like boiled cabbage.
</p><p>“These roots seem to like demigods,” Percy noted, his hand drifting to his pocket towards his pen. 
</p><p>“And the cow creatures like the roots,” Annabeth said, her own hand drifting towards the sword hilt she had borrowed. 
</p><p>The entire herd was now looking in their direction, making foghorn growls and stamping their hooves. Annabeth understood animal behaviour well enough to get the message: You are standing on our food. That makes you enemies. 
</p><p>Annabeth tried to think. There were too many monsters to fight, and she still wasn’t used to fighting with a sword, which she had borrowed from Hazel for this expedition. Something about their eyes hidden those shaggy manes… She had gotten sick from the barest glimpse. She had a bad feeling that if those monsters made direct eye contact, she might get a lot worse than nausea.
</p><p>“Don’t meet their eyes,” Annabeth warned. 
</p><p>Percy stepped forward, pen in hand. “I’ll distract them. You two back up slowly toward that black house.” As he uncapped Riptide and the sword sprung to full length, the creatures tensed, ready to attack. 
</p><p>“Nevermind,” Percy said. “Run!” 
	</p><p>Annabeth learned she was awful at fighting with a sword. She and Nico bolted for the side street while Percy stepped in front of the monsters, hoping to keep their attention. But the sword was so heavy in Annabeth’s hands that she was unbalanced, and didn’t run as fast as she normally did. The overwhelming nausea she felt as she got farther from the Athena Parthenos didn’t help any either. 
	</p><p>Two of the cow monsters peeled off from the herd to chase Nico and Annabeth, and Annabeth decided that running wasn’t going to do her any more good. She steadied herself, sword ready, and charged at the creature. 
	</p><p>She was lucky they weren’t faster monsters. They took wide turns, and Annabeth couldn’t see any way that they could kill other than maybe their eyes and a stampede. She used this to her advantage and kept moving, making the creature have to turn often until she got a clear shot of it’s side. It dissolved into a shower of monster dust, and Annabeth felt overwhelming pride in her skills. She never fought with a sword. 
	</p><p>She looked behind her briefly to see Percy slashing at a hoard of the monsters. He was holding his own just fine, and she could already see that the numbers had diminished. 
	</p><p>Looking back had been a mistake. When she turned forwards again, another of the creatures was charging at her, emerald green gas billowing out from it’s nostrils. She stepped away to avoid the stuff, but the stench almost knocked her over. She slashed at the cow blindly, until she got her bearings. Then she started using the same tactic she had on the other. It worked just as well, though it did a lot to tire her. 
	</p><p>“Annabeth! Annabeth!” 
	</p><p>She turned to focus on the voice. Nico was screaming her name. 
	</p><p>Behind her, in the center of the piazza, where Percy had been fighting off a herd of cattle monsters, Nico di Angelo was holding his Stygian iron sword, gesturing for Annabeth to hurry. At Nico’s feet, two puddles of darkness stained the pavement- no doubt the remains of cow monsters that he had been fighting off. He was still fending off a hoard as it tried to close on him. He wasn’t attacking, just defending and standing his ground. 
	</p><p>And Percy… He was laying being Nico, propped up on against a wall. He wasn’t moving. 
	</p><p>Annabeth ran towards them, barreling through the monster herd. She rushed past Nico and grabbed Percy’s shoulders. His head slumped against her chest. 
	</p><p>“He got a blast of green gas right to the face,” Nico said miserably. “I-I wasn’t fast enough.” 
	</p><p>Annabeth couldn’t tell if he was breathing. Rage and despair battled inside her. She’d never liked Nico much. Now she wasn’t to judo-flip the son of Hades into the nearest canal. Maybe that wasn’t fair, but Annabeth didn’t care. She had just gotten Percy back, she had just gotten to be with him again.
	</p><p>“We need to get him back to the ship,” Annabeth said. 
	</p><p>The cow monster herd prowled just beyond the reach of Nico’s sword. They bellowed their foghorn cries. From nearby streets, more monsters answered. Reinforcements would soon have the demigods surrounded. 
	</p><p>“We’ll never make it on foot,” Annabeth said. She pushed down her anger at Nico for a moment. “Nico, do you think you can shadow travel with Percy to the ship?”
	</p><p>She couldn’t afford to be angry. It clouded her judgment. Besides, Nico might be the only way for Percy to get out of this alive. She could skin the son of Hades alive when they all were safe on the Argo II.
	</p><p>Nico winced slightly at the suggestion, but Annabeth didn’t let up as she raised her sword. “Don’t worry about me. Get him back to the Argo II.” 
	</p><p>With her nausea and exhaustion, Annabeth wasn’t sure how much longer she could last fighting against the creatures, but she was willing to give it a try. She was stopped when a voice behind her said, “Your friends can’t help you. They don’t know the cure.” 
	</p><p>Annabeth spun on her heel, sword still held in defense. Standing in the threshold of the Black House was a young man in jeans and a denim shirt. He had curly black hair and a friendly smile, though Annabeth doubted he was friendly. He probably wasn’t even human. 
	</p><p>At the moment, Annabeth didn’t care. 
	</p><p>“Can you cure him?” She asked. 
	</p><p>“Of course,” the man said. “But you’d better hurry inside. I think you’ve angered every katobleps in Venice.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Annabeth</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>They barely made it inside.
	</p><p>As soon as their host threw the bolts, the cow monsters bellowed and slammed into the door, making it shudder on its hinges. 
	</p><p>“Oh, they can’t get in,” the man in denim promised. “You're safe now!” 
	</p><p>“Safe?” Annabeth asked incredulously. “Percy is dying!” 
	</p><p>Their host frowned as if he didn’t appreciate Annabeth ruining his good mood. “Ues, yes. Bring him this way.” 
	</p><p>Annabeth and Nico worked together to carry Percy safely as they followed the man farther into the building. Annabeth had slung Percy’s backpack over her shoulder. Annabeth’s body was humming with adrenaline. She could feel Percy shivering, so at least she knew he was alive; but his skin was cold. His lips had taken on a greenish tinge- Annabeth hoped that was just her vision playing tricks on her.
	</p><p>Her throat was still burning from the monster’s breath. Her lungs felt like she’d inhaled a flaming cabbage. She didn’t know why the gas had affected her less than Percy. It was probably because she got less of it in her lungs. She would have given anything to change places with him if it meant saving him. 
	</p><p>The nausea in her stomach grew, but Annabeth couldn’t tell if it was from the monster breath or her separation from the Athena Parthenos. Either way, it wasn’t very helpful.
	</p><p>The house’s front room was some sort of greenhouse. The walls were lined with tables of plant trays under fluorescent lights. The air smelled of fertilizer solution, which was not helping Annabeth’s nausea. Perhaps Venetians did their gardening inside since they were surrounded by water instead of soil? Annabeth found she didn’t much care at the moment. 
	</p><p>The back room looked like a combination garage, college dorm, and a computer lab. Against the left wall glowed a bank of servers and laptops, their screensavers flashing pictures of plowed fields and tractors. Against the right wall sat a single bed, a messy desk, and an open wardrobe filled with extra denim clothes and a stack of farm implements, like pitchforks and rakes. 
	</p><p>The back wall was a huge garage door. Parked next to it was a red and gold chariot with an open carriage and a single axle. Sprouting from the sides of the sides of the driver’s box were giant feathery wings. Wrapped around the rim of the left wheel, a spotted python snored loudly. 
	</p><p>Annabeth hadn’t known that pythons could snore, though it didn’t surprise her. George and Martha may not be pythons, but she could definitely see them as snorers. 
	</p><p>“Set your friend here,” said the man in denim. 
	</p><p>Annabeth and Nico placed Percy gently on the bed. She capped his sword and put it into her own pocket, though she figured it would reappear in his, and tried to make him comfortable, but he was as limp as a scarecrow. His complexion definitely had a greenish tint. 
	</p><p>“What were those cow things?” Annabeth demanded. “What did they do to him?” 
	</p><p>“Katoblepones,” said their host. “Singular: katobleps. In English, it means down-looker. Called that because-”
	</p><p>“They’re always looking down.” Nico smacked his forehead. “Right. I remember reading about them.”
	</p><p>Annabeth glared at Nico. “Now you remember?”
	</p><p>Nico hung his head almost as low as a katobleps. “I, uh… In Mythomagic. The katobleps was one of the monster cards. They have poison breath and a poison gaze. But… I thought they only lived in Africa?” Nico looked at the man in denim. He shrugged. 
	</p><p>“That’s their native land. They were accidentally imported to Venice hundreds of years ago. You’ve heard of Saint Mark?” 
	</p><p>Annabeth wanted to scream in frustration. She didn’t see how any of this was relevant, but if their host could heal Percy, she decided it would probably be best not to make him angry. “Saints?” She said through gritted teeth. “They’re not a part of Greek mythology.” 
	</p><p>The man in denim chuckled. “No, but Saint Mark is the patron saint of this city. He died in Egypt, oh, a long time ago. When the Venetians became powerful… Well, the relics of saints were a big tourist attraction back in the Middle Ages. The Venetians decided to steal Saint Mark’s remains and bring them to their big church of San Marco. They smuggled out his body in a barrel of pickled pig parts.” 
	</p><p>“That’s… Disgusting,” Annabeth said.
	</p><p>“Yes,” the man agreed with a smile. “The point is, you can’t do something like that and not have consequences. The Venetians unintentionally smuggled something else out of Egypt- the katoblepones. They came here aboard the ship and have been breeding like rats ever since. They love the magical poison roots that grow here- swampy, foul smelling plants that creep up from the canals. It makes their breath even more poisonous! Usually the monsters will ignore mortals, but demigods… Especially demigods who get in their way-” 
	</p><p>“Got it,” Annabeth snapped. “Can you cure him?” 
	</p><p>The man shrugged. “Possibly.” 
	</p><p>“Possibly?” Annabeth had to use all her willpower not to throttle the guy. 
	</p><p>She put her hand under Percy’s nose. She couldn’t feel him breathing. “Nico, please tell me he’s alive.” 
	</p><p>Nico grimaced. “I dunno. I can’t sense life, but I can’t sense any death either. It’s like he’s in some… in between state.” 
	</p><p>“You’re a child of Hades!” Cried their host. He backed away, staring at Nico with distaste. “So that’s what I smell. Child of the Underworld? If I had known that, I would have never let you in! Out, out, out!”
	</p><p>Annabeth rose. “Percy is a good person! You promised you would help him!” 
	</p><p>“I did not promise.” 
	</p><p>Nico drew his sword. “He is a hero,” he growled. “I don’t know who you are, but if you can cure him, you have to, or so help me by the River Styx-” 
	</p><p>“Oh, blah, blah, blah!” The man waved his hand. Suddenly, where Nico di Angelo had been standing was a potted plant about five feet tall, with drooping green leaves, tufts of silk, and half a dozen ripe yellow ears of corn. 
	</p><p>“There,” the man huffed, wagging his finger at the corn plant. “Children of Hades can’t order me around! You should talk less and listen more. Now at least you have ears.” 
	</p><p>Annabeth had been so focused on Percy, she’d forgotten what Jason had told them about the guy they were looking for. “You’re a god.” She tried to keep her voice steady. There was no point showing fear. 
	</p><p>“Triptolemus.” The man bowed. “My friends call me Trip, so don’t call me that. And if you’re another child of Hades-” 
	</p><p>“Athena!” Annabeth said quickly. “Daughter of Athena. Percy is the son of Poseidon.” She gestured to her boyfriend. He didn’t seem to be improving any. 
	</p><p>Triptolemus sniffled. “Well… Not much better. But perhaps you two deserve to be something better than a corn plant. Sorghum? Sorghum is very nice.”
	</p><p>“Wait!” Annabeth said. “We’re here on a friendly mission. We brought a gift.” Very slowly, she reached down to Percy’s backpack, which she had sat next to the bed, and pulled out the leather bound book. “This belongs to you?” 
	</p><p>“My almanac!” Triptolemus grinned and seized the book. He thumbed through the pages and started bouncing on the balls of his feet. “Oh, this is fabulous! Where did you find it?” 
	 </p><p>“Bologna. There were these-” Annabeth stopped herself, remembering she wasn’t supposed to mention the dwarfs- “Terrible monsters. We risked our lives, but we knew this was important to you.” Flatter him. Gods love flattery. “So could you please Nico back to normal and heal Percy?”
	</p><p>“Hmm?” Trip looked up from his book. He’d been happily reciting lines to himself- something about turnip planting schedules. “Oh, heal them?” Triptolemus chuckled disapprovingly. “I’m grateful for the book, of course. I can definitely let you go free, daughter of Athena. But I have a long-standing problem with Hades. After all, I owe my godly powers of Demeter!” 
	</p><p>“Because Hades kidnapped Persephone? Was she a friend of yours?” Annabeth asked. She didn’t recognise the name Triptolemus, but maybe she had simply overlooked it. 
	</p><p>Trip snorted. “I was just a mortal prince back then. Persephone wouldn’t have noticed me. But when her mother, Demeter, went searching for her, scouring the whole earth, not many people would help her. Hecate lit her way at night with torches. And I… Well, when Demeter came to my part of Greece, I gave her a place to stay. I comforted her, gave her a meal, and offered my assistance. I didn’t know she was a goddess at the time, but my good deed paid off. Later, Demeter rewarded me by making me a god of farming.” 
	</p><p>“Wow,” Annabeth said, faking enthusiasm. “Farming. Congratulations.” 
	</p><p>“I know! Pretty awesome, right? Anyway, Demeter never got along with Hades. So naturally, you know, I have to side along with my patron goddess. Children of Hades- Forget it! In fact, one of them- this Scythian king named Lynkos? When I tried to teach his countrymen about farming, he killed my right python!” 
	</p><p>“Your right python?” 
	</p><p>Trip marched over to his winged chariot and hopped in. He pulled a lever, and the wings began to flap. The spotted python on the left wheel opened his eyes. He started to writhe, coiling around the axle like a spring. The chariot whirred into motion, but the right wheel stayed in place, so Triptolemus spun in circles, the chariot beating its wings and bouncing up and down like a defective merry go round. 
	</p><p>“You see?” He said as he spun. “No good! Ever since I lost my right python, I haven’t been able to spread the word about farming- at least not in person. Now I have to resort to online courses.”
	</p><p>“What?” As soon as she said it, Annabeth was sorry she had asked. Trip hopped off the chariot while it was still spinning. The python slowed to a stop and went back to snoring. Trip jogged over to his line of computers. He tapped the keyboards and the screens woke up, displaying on every monitor a website in maroon and gold, with a picture of a happy farmer in a toga and a John Deere cap, standing with his bronze scythe in a field of wheat. 
	</p><p>“Triptolemus Farming University!” He announced proudly. “In just six weeks, you can get your bachelor’s degree in the exciting and vibrant career of the future- farming!” 
	</p><p>Annabeth felt a bead of sweat trickle down her neck. She didn’t care about this crazy god or his snake powered chariot or his online degree program. But Percy was turning greener by the moment. Nico was a corn plant. And she was alone. 
	</p><p>“Look,” she said. “We did bring you the almanac. And my friends are really nice. Nico’s not like any other son of Hades you’ve met. Percy’s not even a child of Hades! He’s the son of Poseidon-” 
	</p><p>“Poseidon,” Trip huffed. “He’s always flooding my fields and drowning my crops.” 
	</p><p>Annabeth glared at the god for a moment. “So if there’s anyway you can-”
	</p><p>“Oh!” Trip snapped his fingers. “I see where you’re going with this!”
	</p><p>“You do?”
	</p><p>“Absolutely! If I cure your friend Percy and return the other one, Nicholas-”
	</p><p>"Nico.” 
	</p><p>“-if I return him to normal…”
	</p><p>Annabeth hesitated. “Yes?”
	</p><p>“Then in exchange, you stay with me and take up farming! A child of Athena as my apprentice? It’s perfect! What a spokeswoman you’ll be. We can beat swords into plowshares and have so much fun!”
	</p><p>“Actually…” Annabeth tried frantically to come up with a plan. If she declined Trip’s offer, she figured she would offend the god and end up as sorghum or wheat or some other cash crop.
	</p><p>If it was the only way to save Percy, then sure, Annabeth could agree to Trip’s demands and become a farmer. But that couldn’t be the only way. She refused to believe she’d been chosen by the Fates to go through the life she had to go on this quest just so she could take online courses in turnip cultivation. 
	</p><p>Annabeth’s eyes wandered to the broken chariot. “I have a better offer,” she blurted out. “I can fix that.”
	</p><p>Trip’s smile melted. “Fix… My chariot?”
	</p><p>Annabeth wanted to kick herself. What was she thinking? She wasn’t Leo! She could follow plans, sure, and that made her a fine mechanic for the Argo II because Leo had left plans for everything strewn everywhere, but she couldn’t make her own engineering diagrams. Her mind didn’t work that way. Architecture was her passion, not engineering. She couldn’t fix a magical chariot! 
	</p><p>But something told her that this was her only chance. That chariot was the one thing Triptolemus might really want. 
	</p><p>“I’ll go find a way to fix the chariot,” she said. “In return, you fix Nico and Percy. Let us go in peace. And give us whatever aid you can to defeat Gaea’s forces.” 
	</p><p>Triptolemus laughed. “What makes you think I can aid you with that?” 
	</p><p>“Hecate told us so,” Annabeth said. “She sent us here. She decided that one of our crew, a daughter of Pluto, is one of her favorites.” 
	</p><p>The colour drained from Trip’s face. “Hecate?” 
	</p><p>Annabeth hoped she wasn’t overstating things. She really didn’t need another goddess mad at her. But if Triptolemus and Hecate were both friends of Demeter, then maybe that would convince Trip to help. 
	</p><p>“The goddess guided us to your almanac in Bologna,” Annabeth said. “She wanted us to return it to you. She must have known you had some knowledge that would help us get through the House of Hades in Epirus.” 
	</p><p>Trip nodded slowly. “Yes. I see. I know why Hecate sent you to me. Very well, daughter of Athena. Go find a way to fix my chariot. If you succeed, I will do all you ask. If not-” 
	</p><p>“I know,” Annabeth grumbled. “My friends will die.”
	</p><p>“Yes,” Trip said cheerfully. “And you’ll make a lovely patch of sorghum!” 
</p><p>----------
	</p><p>Annabeth stumbled out of the Black House. The door shut behind her, and she collapsed against the wall, overcome with guilt. Fortunately, the katoblepones had cleared off, or she might have just sat there and let them trample her. She deserved nothing better. The first mission she went on after getting saved, and she’d left her boyfriend inside, dying and defenseless, at the mercy of a crazy farmer god. 
	</p><p>Her head felt like it was going to split open. She had never been away from the Athena Parthenos this long, and her nausea was doubling by the minute. She clutched her temples, desperately hoping that would ease the pain, but it did nothing. A couple of old ladies with shopping bags shuffled past her as she doubled over. They gave her a strange look and muttered something in Italian, but their voices sounded underwater and distant. 
	</p><p>She couldn’t think like this. There was no way she would be able to come up with a way to fix the chariot with her head tearing her apart. She could run back to the Argo II, see if Leo had any kind of blueprints that might help her out. She couldn’t do this on her own. 
	</p><p>But she also knew that that was exactly how it was meant to be done. This was her task. She had to prove herself. Besides, the chariot wasn’t exactly broken. There was no mechanical problem. It was missing a python. 
	</p><p>Annabeth didn’t know how to fix that.
	</p><p>There had to be a way. Serpents, Annabeth thought. Athena.
	</p><p>Did her mother have some sort of connection to snakes? Athena’s sacred animal was the owl, not the serpent. Annabeth knew that. Still, tugging at the back of her mind, she was sure she had heard something once. There had to be something significant about snakes to her mother. She had turned Medusa into a gorgon, after all. 
	</p><p>She tried to tug at the loose thread. There had to be a reason! 
	</p><p>It hit her like a wave. In ancient Greece, her mother was the patron goddess of snakes. Their hisses warned of danger or gave prophecy. And while Athena favored the owl, the snake was still the animal of prophecy and warnings. 
	</p><p> She knew the tie between snakes and her mother now, but she wasn’t sure what she was supposed to do with the information. She huffed and scrunched her nose. 
	</p><p>‘Mom,’ she said, ‘I need a snake. I know it’s one of your sacred animals, and I know you have made your enemies into snakes in the past. But what do I do?’
	</p><p>It wasn’t Athena’s voice that answered. Though the voice was unfamiliar, Annabeth was able to recognise it instinctually. 
	</p><p>‘Your mother is still… Out of commission. She has sent me here to do what you ask,’ the voice echoed in her head. 
	</p><p>‘Nike?’ Annabeth asked. She supposed she shouldn’t have been surprised. Athena was almost always pictured with the victory goddess. 
	</p><p>‘Yes,’ Nike answered. Annabeth could hear the smugness in her voice. 
	</p><p>‘Well, can you turn someone into a snake for me?’
	</p><p>Nike scoffed, and Annabeth chided herself. Of course it wasn’t going to be that easy. ‘You have not proven your worth!’ Nike said. ‘Only the greatest hero could ask such a thing from me!’
	</p><p>‘My mom told you to do it,’ Annabeth grumbled. 
	</p><p>‘And I will,’ Nike answered. ‘Once you prove yourself.’ 
	</p><p>Annabeth sighed. Her head hurt too much for this. ‘What do you need me to do?’
	</p><p>‘Fight! Win! Be victorious! Venice is overrun with those monsters, the katoblepones. Cleanse it! Destroy them all! Prove your worth!’
	</p><p>Annabeth pushed the voice to the back of her mind. Nike was still screaming variations of the word “win”. She looked at her hand, gripping Hazel’s spatha, and was amazed she wasn’t shaking. She supposed she didn’t have time to worry. She needed to think. To plan. 
	</p><p>She knew exactly what she needed to do, though she wasn’t exactly sure how she would pull it off. The odds of dying were excellent, but she had to try. Percy’s life depended on it. Percy had saved her life too many times for her not to repay the favor. 
	</p><p>She gripped the sword tighter in her hand and raced towards the piazza where she'd fought the cow monsters. 
	</p><p>The plan had three phases: dangerous, really dangerous, and insanely dangerous. 
	</p><p>Annabeth stopped at the old stone well. No katoblepones in sight. She used the spatha to pry up some cobblestones, unearthing a big tangle of spiky roots. The tendrils unfurled, exuding their stinky green fumes as they crept towards her feet. 
	</p><p>In the distance, a katobleps’s foghorn moan filled the air. Others joined in from all different directions. Annabeth wasn’t sure how the monsters could tell she was harvesting their favorite food- maybe they just had an excellent sense of smell. 
	</p><p>She had to move fast now. She sliced off a long cluster of vines and laced them through one of her belt loops, trying to ignore the burning and itching in her hands. Soon, she had a glowing, stinking lasso of poisonous weeds. 
	</p><p>The first few katoblepones lumbered into the piazza, bellowing in anger. Green eyes glowed under their manes. Their long snouts blew clouds of gas. 
	</p><p>Annabeth lunged at the nearest katobleps. She felt a momentary pang of guilt. These were not the worst monsters she’d met. Far from it. They were just grazing animals that happened to be poisonous. 
	</p><p>Percy is dying because of them, she reminded herself. 
	</p><p>The katobleps collapsed, crumbling into dust. She readied her stance to attack again, but the rest of the herd was almost on top of her. More were charging into the square from the opposite direction. If she stayed to fight more, she’d end up trampled to death. 
	</p><p>Annabeth spun on her heel and started running. She found herself thankful, for the first time, that she was in Venice. The piazza and the streets leading into it were wide enough to hold the katoblepones, but she kept turning down narrow roads and lanes, effectively cutting them off or causing them to have to run towards her in single file. 
	</p><p>But this also kept her isolated from finding new katoblepones. When she turned around, she had at least two dozen monsters on her tail, but she needed more. Annabeth needed all the monsters in Venice, and she had to keep the ones behind her engaged. 
	</p><p>She found her way onto a main street again. Each time she raced past a katobleps, it roared with outrage and joined the Kill Annabeth! Parade. She pushed through the crowd of tourists. She had no idea what the mortals saw- a cat being chased by a pack of dogs? People cursed at Annabeth in about twelve different languages, none of which Annabeth cared to put effort into translating. Gelato cones went flying. A woman spilled carnival masks. One duded toppled into the canal. 
	</p><p>She found an open spot in the crowd and turned around towards the katoblepones. She slashed the golden blade of the cavalry sword, destroying the first katobleps, and letting the others bunch up in front of her. 
	</p><p>She tried to avoid their eyes, but she could feel their gaze buring into her. She figured that if all these monsters breathed on her at once, their combined noxious cloud would be enough to melt her into a puddle. The monsters crowded forward and slammed into one another, creating a jam. 
	</p><p>Annabeth yelled, “You want the poison roots? Come and get them!” 
	</p><p>She started running again, turning onto another narrow road that jammed up the katoblepones as they tried to follow her in. When she reached the nearest main road, she turned back around, stabbed a few more katoblepones, and took off running. 
	</p><p>So it went. 
	</p><p>After a while, Annabeth fell into a kind of daze. She attracted more monsters, scattered more crowds of tourists, and led her now massive following of katoblepones through the winding streets of the old city. Whenever she needed a quick escape, she would dive into a side street that could barely fit her and ran on ahead, but she never got too far ahead of her pursuers. 
	</p><p>Whenever she felt like the monsters might be losing interest, she dove into a narrow road that pulled then single file, and picked off a few of the katoblepones. She shook her lasso of poison vines and insulted the monsters’ bad breath, stirring them into a fury. Then, she continued to race. 
	</p><p>She backtracked. She lost her way. Once, she turned a corner and ran into the tail end of her own monster mob. She had managed to kill about twenty katoblepones before she was noticed and had to start running again. She should have been exhausted, yet somehow she found the strength to keep going- which was good. The hardest part was yet to come. 
	</p><p>She spotted a couple bridges, but they didn’t look right. One was elevated and completely covered; no way she could get the monsters to funnel through it. Another was too crowded with tourists. Even if the monsters ignored the mornals, that noxious gas couldn’t be good for anyone to breathe. The bigger the monster herd got, the more mortals would get pushed aside, knocked into the water, or trampled. 
	</p><p>Finally, Annabeth saw something that would work. Just ahead, past a big piazza, a wooden bridge spanned one of the widest canals. The bridge itself was a latticed arc of timber, like an old-fashioned roller coaster, about fifty meters long. 
	</p><p>She couldn’t see any monsters on the far side. Every katobleps in Venice seemed to have joined the herd and was pushing through the streets behind her as tourists screamed and scattered. 
	</p><p>The bridge was empty of foot traffic. It was perfect. 
	</p><p>She ran to the middle of the bridge- at natural choke point- and threw her bait of poisonous roots on the deck behind her. As the front of the katobleps herd reached the base of the bridge, Annabeth steadied herself, holding the golden spatha in front of her. 
	</p><p>“Come on!” She yelled. “You want to know what Annabeth Chase is worth? Come on!” 
	</p><p>She realised she wasn’t just shouting at the monsters. She was venting weeks, months, years of pent up fear, rage, and resentment. At her mom, for sending her on that stupid quest that could have gotten her killed and never even acknowleding her. At her stepmom and her dad, for never giving her a chance to have a normal family. At every single god that had almost killed her and Percy. 
	</p><p>The monsters charged. Annabeth’s vision turned red. 
	</p><p>Later, she couldn’t remember the details clearly, which killed her. She sliced through monsters until she was ankle-deep in yellow dust. Whenever she got overwhelmed, she just remembered Percy lying in that bed, sickly green and unmoving, and she received a fresh burst of energy. She didn’t stop moving, and the clouds of green gas didn’t seem to be able to catch up to her lungs. 
	</p><p>The monsters kicked with their hooves. They breathed noxious gas and glared straight as Annabeth with their poisonous eyes. She should have died. She should have been trampled. But somehow, she stayed on her feet, unharmed, and unleashed a hurricane of violence. 
	</p><p>She didn’t feel any sort of pleasure in this, but she didn’t hesitate either. She stabbed at one monster and beheaded another. She ran them into each other. She knocked one katobleps off the bridge and it drowned in the canal. Her vision was still tinted reed, and she realised her eyes weren’t playing tricks on her. She was actually glowing- surrounded by a rosy aura. 
	</p><p>She didn’t understand, but she pushed the thought to the back of her mind. She couldn’t afford to get distracted. She kept fighting until there was only one monster left. 
	</p><p>Annabeth faced it with her sword drawn. She was out of breath, sweaty, and caked in monster dust. But she was unharmed. 
	</p><p>The katobleps snarled. It must not have been the smartest monster. Despite the fact that several hundred of its brethren had just died, it did not back down. 
	</p><p>“Nike!” Annabeth yelled. “I’ve proven myself. Now I need a snake!” 
	</p><p>She doubted anyone had ever shouted those words before. It was an odd request. She got no answer from the skies. The voice of Nike was silent in her head. 
	</p><p>The katobleps lost patience. It launched itself at Annabeth and left her no choice. She slashed upwards. As soon as her blade hit the monster, the katobleps disappeared in a flash of blood-red light. When Annabeth’s vision cleared, a mottled brown Burmese python was coiled at her feet. 
	</p><p>“Well done,” said a familiar voice. 
	</p><p>Standing a few feet away was Nike. She was wearing an italian business woman suit, and her hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail. Despite her modern look, she still wore her golden olive crown. The likeness to her statue on the Athena Parthenos was startling. She didn’t look exactly the same, but her fierce eyes were unmistakable. 
	</p><p>“Nike,” Annabeth managed through heaving breaths. 
	</p><p>“Well done, Annabeth Chase. You have proven yourself worthy. You have defended your city. You were victorious.” 
	</p><p>Annabeth felt anger rising in her. She couldn’t believe this goddess had done this to her. Had made her fight an entire city of cow monsters just to get a stupid snake! Her mother had already ordered the goddess to give it to her!
	</p><p>“I just needed a snake.” Annabeth said through gritted teeth. 
	</p><p>A smug smirk tugged at Nike’s mouth. “Yes. And now you have one.” Annabeth huffed and grabbed the python, allowing it to wrap itself around her arm. “Go. Save you friends. But here me, Chase. Your greatest test is yet to come. When you face the armies of Gaea at Epirus, your leadership will be invaluable.” 
	</p><p>The goddess vanished into the air, as if she had never been there, leaving Annabeth with more questions and more anger than before she had appeared. But she kept it to herself, silently fuming, rather than demanding Nike come back. She didn’t have time to create more problems. Despite her exhaustion, she ran all the way back through the city- now completely empty of monsters- to the house of Triptolemus.
</p><p>----------
	</p><p>“You found one!” The farmer god exclaimed. 
	</p><p>Annabeth ignored him. She stormed into La Casa Nera, python curled around her arm. She shoved it off her onto the floor next to the bed. 
	</p><p>She knelt at Percy’s bed. 
	</p><p>He was still alive- green and shivering, barely breathing, but alive. As for Nico, he was still a corn plant. 
	</p><p>“Heal them,” Annabeth said. “Now.” 
	</p><p>Triptolemus crossed his arms. “How do I know the snake will work?” 
	</p><p>Annabeth gritted her teeth. Since her vision had gone red on the bridge, her nausea had disappeared. She hadn’t noticed it at the time, but now, as it was crawling back at her stomach and throat, it felt as if it had doubled from before. She didn’t have the patience for the god’s apprehension. 
	</p><p>“The snake is a gift from Nike and Athena,” Annabeth growled. “It will work.” 
	</p><p>As if on cue, the Burmese python slithered over to the chariot and wrapped itself around the right wheel. The other snake woke up. The two serpents checked each other out, touched noses, then turned their wheels in unison. The chariot inched forward, its wings flapping. 
	</p><p>“You see?” Annabeth said. “Now, heal my friends!” 
	</p><p>Triptolemus tapped his chin. “Well, thank you for the snake, but I’m not sure I like your tone, demigod. Perhaps I’ll turn you into-” 
	</p><p>Annabeth was faster. She lunged at Trip and slammed him into the wall, one hand on his shoulder and the other on her swords, the blade inches from his throat. 
	</p><p>“Think about your next words,” Annabeth warned. Her voice was deadly calm. She’d had her life messed with my too many gods today to take this lying down. “Or instead of beating my sword into a plowshare, I’ll be beating it into your head.” 
	</p><p>Triptolemus gulped. “You know… I think I’ll heal your friends.” 
	</p><p>“Swear it on the River Styx.” 
	</p><p>“I swear it on the River Styx.”
	</p><p>Annabeth released him. Triptolemus touched his throat, as if making sure it was still there. He gave Annabeth a nervous smile, edged around her, and scurried off to the front room. “Just- Just gathering herbs!” 
	</p><p>Annabeth watched as the god picked leaves and roots and crushed them in a mortar. He rolled a pill-sized ball of green goop and jogged to Percy’s side. He placed the gunk ball under Percy’s tongue. 
	</p><p>Instantly, he shuddered and sat up, coughing. His eyes flew open. The greenish tint in his skin disappeared.
	</p><p>He looked around, bewildered, until he saw Annabeth. “What-?” 
	</p><p>Annabeth tacked her boyfriend into a hug. “You idiot!” She said fiercely. “Don’t ever do that again!” 
	</p><p>“But…” Percy gripped her shoulders and stared at her. Worry was obvious in his eyes. “Annabeth, what happened to you?” 
	</p><p>“To me?” She stood, suddenly self-conscious. “I don’t-” 
	</p><p>Percy reached up and touched her cheek. Annabeth winced, and Percy pulled away. On his thumb was a small drop of blood. Annabeth looked down at her arms. Slowly, cuts and bruises from her battle with that katoblepones were appearing, as if they were on a time delay. She didn’t feel them yet, but she was sure that any minute, she would. 
	</p><p>“I… I don’t know…”
	</p><p>“We need to get you back to the ship. You need some ambrosia,” Percy started doting. “What happened?” 
	</p><p>Triptolemus heaved a dramatic sigh. “Oh, she’ll be fine. Just the aftermath of some sort of blessing. Likely from Nike. Allowed you not to feel any injuries while you were in battle. Now that it’s wearing off, the injurings are appearing, blah, blah, blah. Now, if we’re done here…?” 
	</p><p>Annabeth glared at him. “We’re not done. Heal Nico.” 
	</p><p>The farm god rolled his eyes. He pointed at the corn plant, and Nico di Angelo appeared in an explosion of corn silk. 
	</p><p>Nico looked around in a panic. “I-I had the weirdest nightmare about popcorn.” He frowned at Annabeth. “What happened to you?”
	</p><p>“Everything’s fine,” Annabeth promised. “Triptolemus was about to tell us how to survive the House of Hades. Weren’t you, Trip?”
	</p><p>The farm god raised his eyes to the ceiling, as if he was cursing the gods for his own existence. 
	</p><p>“Fine,” Trip said. “When you arrive at Epirus, you will be offered a chalice to drink from.” 
	</p><p>“Offered by whom?” Nico asked.
	</p><p>“Doesn’t matter,” Trip snapped. “Just know that it’s filled with deadly poison.” 
	</p><p>Percy raised an eyebrow. “So you’re saying that we shouldn’t drink it.”
	</p><p>“No!” Trip said. “You must drink it, or you’ll never be able to make it through the temple. The poison connects you to the world of the dead, lets you pass into lower levels. The secret surviving is-” his eyes twinkled- “barley.” 
	</p><p>Annabeth stared at him. “Barley.” 
	</p><p>“In the front room, take some of my special barely. Make it into little cakes. Eat these before you step into the House of Hades. The barley will absorb the worst of the poison, so it will affect you, but not kill you.” 
	</p><p>“That’s it?” Nico demanded. “Hecate sent us halfway across Italy so you could tell us to eat barley?” Annabeth felt similarly. This felt like something that Hecate could have told them herself. 
	</p><p>“Good luck!” Triptolemus sprinted across that room and hopped into his chariot. “And, Annabeth Chase, I forgive you! You’ve got spunk. If you ever change your mind, my offer is open. I’d love to see you get a degree in farming!” 
	</p><p>“Yeah. Thanks,” Annabeth muttered. 
	</p><p>The god pulled a lever on his chariot. The snake-wheels turned. The wings flapped. At the back of the room, the garage doors rolled open. 
	</p><p>“Oh, to be mobile again!” Trip cried. “So many ignorant lands in need of my knowledge. I will teach them the glories of tilling, irrigation, fertilizing!” The chariot lifted off and zipped out of the house, Triptolemus shouting to the sky, “Away, my serpents! Away!”
	</p><p>“That,” Percy said, “was very strange. I think I prefer George and Martha.” 
	</p><p>“The glories of fertilizing.” Nico brushed some corn silk off his shoulder. “Can we get out of here now?” 
	</p><p>Percy put his hand on Annabeth’s shoulder. “Are you okay, really? You bartered for our lives. What did Trip-whatever make you do?”
	</p><p>Annabeth tried to hold it together. She scolded herself for feeling so weak. She could face an army of monsters, but when Percy checked in on her, she wanted to break down and cry. “Those cow monsters, the katoblepones that poisoned you… I had to defeat them.” 
	</p><p>“That was brave,” Nico said. “There must have been, what, six or seven left in the herd.” 
	</p><p>“No.” Annabeth took a deep breath. “All of them. I killed all of them in the city.” 
	</p><p>Nico and Percy stared at her in stunned silence. Annabeth was afraid they might doubt her, or start to laugh. How many monsters had she killed on that bridge? Two hundred? Three hundred?
	</p><p>But she saw in their eyes that they believed her. Maybe Nico could sense the death and carnage she’d unleashed. Maybe Percy could see that her eyes were different now. 
	</p><p>Percy grabbed her hand and pecked her cheek. His eyes were incredibly sad, as if he realised something in Annabeth had changed.
	</p><p>Annabeth knew it too. She would never be the same. She just wasn’t sure if it was a good thing. 
	</p><p>“Well,” Nico said, breaking the tension, “does anyone know what barley looks like?”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Sorry this chapter is so long! It's too long to be one chapter but two chapters would be too short.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Leo</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Leo decided the monsters wouldn’t kill him. Neither would the poisonous atmosphere, nor the treacherous landscape with its pits, cliffs, and jagged rocks.</p><p>Nope. Most likely he would just die from an overload of weirdness that would make his brain explode. 
	</p><p>First, he and Frank had to drink fire to stay alive. And the fire actually burned him. Then they were attacked by a gaggle of cheerleading vampires with flaming heads. Finally, they were rescued by a Titan janitor named Bob who had Einstein hair, silver eyes, and wicked broom skills, all because they had mentioned Percy’s name. 
	</p><p>Sure. Why not? Sounded like a normal day for Leo.
	</p><p>They followed Bob through the wasteland, tracing the route of the Phlegethon as they approached the storm front of darkness. Every so often they stopped to drink firewater, which kept them alive, but Leo wasn’t happy about it. His throat felt like he was constantly gargling with battery acid (yes, he’d done it, don’t ask. The Apollo kids hated that trip to the infirmary). Frank didn’t seem much happier, always keeping Leo between him and the river. Leo didn’t blame him. 
	</p><p>But this comforted him. Frank eyed the river nervously as they walked, or flinched and reached for arrows in his quiver that wasn’t there whenever they heard a sound, and it reminded Leo that he wasn’t alone. Frank was just as scared and miserable as he was. It was okay for him to be scared. 
	</p><p>“Bob knows what he’s doing,” Frank said, breaking the silence. He sounded confident, but Leo could see uncertainty in his eyes. He decided not to point it out. 
	</p><p>“Percy has interesting friends…” Leo murmured.
	</p><p>“Bob is interesting!” The Titan turned and grinned, continuing to walk backwards. It was off putting, seeing such a big guy walk with such ease. “Yes, thank you!” 
	</p><p>He had good ears. Leo would have to remember that.
	</p><p>“So, Bob…” He tried to sound casual and friendly, which wasn’t easy with a throat scorched by firewater. “How did you get to Tartarus?”
	</p><p>“I jumped,” He said, like it was obvious. 
	</p><p>“You jumped into Tartarus,” He said, “Because you heard Percy’s name?”
	</p><p>“It was not a monster voice. And I thought… He needed me.” Sadness glinted briefly in his silver eyes, gleaming in the darkness, but they brightened so fast Leo might have imagined it. “But I found Friends of Percy instead!” He turned back around. “It is okay. I was tired of sweeping the palace. Come along! We are almost at a rest stop.” 
	</p><p>A rest stop.
	</p><p>Leo couldn’t imagine what those words meant in Tartarus. He remembered all the times he had relied on highway rest stops when he was running from foster homes, determined not to be found, just trying to survive. 
	</p><p>Wherever Bob was taking them, he hoped it had clean restrooms and a snack machine. He let out a choked snort from his nose at the thought, and Frank gave him a sideways glance.
	</p><p>Yep, he was definitely losing it. 
	</p><p>Leo followed along, trying to ignore the rumble in his stomach. He hadn’t eaten well before falling into Tartarus, worried that the ship might not hold out over the whole trip. They were already running low in repair supplies. Now, it was coming back to bite him. He stared at Bob’s back as he led them toward the wall of darkness, now only a few hundred yards away. His blue coveralls were ripped between the shoulderblades, as if someone had tried to stab him. Cleaning rags stuck out of his pocket. A squirt bottle swung from his belt, the blue liquid sloshing hypnotically.
	</p><p>Ridiculously, he reminded him of his mom. She’s often dressed very similar, going to the machine shop. Blue coveralls blackened from grease and oil, dirty rags sticking haphazardly out of her pocket, a toolbelt with every possible tool she could ever need inside, and cleaners fastened to it. By the time Leo was old enough to work with her, her coveralls were torn and resewn in several places. They didn’t have enough money to buy a new pair, but she could sew just fine. It was just like working on a machine, to her. It was one of the first handy things Leo ever learned how to do.
	</p><p>Absently, he wondered if Bob would let him sew up his coveralls.
	</p><p>Frank kept eyeing Bob, and Leo couldn’t say he blamed him, but he didn’t know exactly what they could do if the Titan went rouge. He had seen the way he had dealt with those empousai, and he and Frank were as good as unarmed. They were in no condition to fight a Titan. But at the same time, if Bob wanted to kill then, he could have done so already. And he seemed friendly enough, if a little absent minded. 
	</p><p>Following Bob through Tartarus was a crazy risk, of that Leo had no doubt. But he couldn’t think of a better plan, and it didn’t seem Frank could either.
	</p><p>They picked their way across the ashen wasteland as red lightning flashed overhead in the poisonous clouds. Leo couldn’t see far into the hazy air, but the longer they walked, the more certain he became that the entire landscape was a downward curve. 
	</p><p>He’d heard conflicting descriptions of Tartarus. They were almost as numerous as descriptions of Olympus itself (which Annabeth had been quick to set straight when she heard campers giving it wrong). It was a bottomless pit. It was a fortress surrounded by brass walls. It was nothing but an endless void. 
	</p><p>One story described it as an inverse sky, Leo recalled- a huge, hollow, upside down dome of rock. That seemed the most accurate, though if Tartarus was a dome, he guessed it was like the sky- with no real bottom but made of multiple layers, each one darker and less hospitable than the last. 
	</p><p>And even that, Leo knew, wasn’t the full truth…
</p><p>They passed a blister in the ground- a writhing, translucent bubble the size of a minivan. Curled inside was the half formed body of a drakon. It looked about ready to pop, and Leo summoned fire to his hands, ready for a fight, but Bob speared the blister without a second thought. It burst into a geyser of steaming yellow slime, and the drakon dissolved into nothing. 
	</p><p>Bob kept walking. Leo’s fire went out. 
	</p><p>Monsters are zits on the skin of Tartarus, Leo thought, and even though he had said something similar before, he shuddered. Sometimes, he wished he didn’t have such a good imagination, because now he was certain they were walking across a living thing. This whole twisted landscape- the dome, pit, whatever- was the body of the god Tartarus. Just as ol’ Dirt Face inhabited the surface of the earth, Tartarus inhabited the pit. 
	</p><p>If that god noticed them walking across his skin, like fleas on a dog… Enough. No more thinking. 
	</p><p>“Here,” Bob said. 
	</p><p>They stopped at the top of a ridge. Below them, in a sheltered depression like a moon crater, stood a ring of broken black marble columns surrounding a dark stone altar.
	</p><p>“Hermes’s shrine,” Bob explained. 
	</p><p>Frank frowned. “A Hermes shrine in Tartarus?”
	</p><p>Bob laughed in delight. “Yes. It fell from somewhere long ago. Maybe mortal world. Maybe Olympus. Anyway, monsters steer clear. Mostly.”
	</p><p>“How did you know it was here?” Leo asked. 
	</p><p>Bob’s smile faded. He got a vacant look in his eyes. “Can’t remember.”
	</p><p>“That’s okay,” Frank said quickly. Leo looked to Frank curiously, but didn’t say anything else. “It’s still going to be useful.” He didn’t sound so sure. 
	</p><p>They climbed into the crater and entered the circle of columns. Leo went to sit on a broken slab of marble, then found he couldn’t stand up, too exhausted and his legs too unsteady to take another step. He hadn’t realised how tired he was until he wasn’t standing anymore. 
	</p><p>Frank stood over him, a hand on his shoulder as he scanned their surroundings. The inky storm front was less than a hundred feet away now, obscuring everything ahead of them. The crater’s rim blocked their view of the wasteland behind. They’d be well hidden here, but if monsters did stumble across them, they would have no warning. 
</p><p>“You said someone was chasing us,” Frank said. “Who?” 
	</p><p>Bob swept his broom around the base of the altar, occasionally crouching down to study the ground as if looking for something. Loe though it looked absent minded, like when he began fiddling with nuts and bolts from his tool belt just to have something to do with his hand. Or when he wanted an excuse not to make eye contact. “They are following, yes. They know you are here. Giants and Titans. The defeated ones. They know.”
	</p><p>The defeated ones…
	</p><p>Leo tried to control his fear. Was it just the giants he had defeated? Or was it like Kelli? Were they searching out him and Frank just to have a demigod to get revenge on? Just for knowing Percy? Just for being born? If that was the case, if all of them were down here in Tartarus, if they were actively hunting Leo and Frank…
	</p><p>“Why are we stopping, then?” He asked. “We should keep moving.” 
	</p><p>“Soon,” Bob said. “But mortals need rest. Good place here. Best place for… oh, long, long way. I will guard you.” 
	</p><p>Frank shifted nervously and shot Leo a look, a silent message: Uh oh. Leo understood why. Hanging out with a Titan was dangerous enough, even if he didn seem friendly. But going to sleep while the Titan guarded you… He didn’t need to be some child of Athena to know that was just stupid. 
	</p><p>But Leo’s eyelids were already growing heavy at the suggestion, and Frank must have seen it. 
	</p><p>“You sleep,” Frank told him. “I’ll keep the first watch with Bob.” 
	</p><p>Bob rumbled in agreement. “Yes, good. When you awake, food should be here!” 
	</p><p>Leo’s stomach did a rollover at the mention of food. He didn’t see how Bob could summon food in the midst of Tartarus. Maybe he was a caterer as well as a janitor. 
	</p><p>“Wake me for second watch. Don’t try to be a hero, Mr. Mystique.” Leo gave Frank a stern look, but he silently thanked him. He needed to sleep now. He wasn’t sure if he could go on much longer if he didn't. 
	</p><p>Frank let out a soft laugh, rough from his firewater burnt throat. “Just sleep, Fire Boy.” 
	</p><p>Leo felt like he was back in Bunker Nine, working hard on the Argo II, pulling a third all nighter while his cabin mates slept soundly. He was overcome with drowsiness. He curled up on the hard ground and closed his eyes. 
</p><p>----------
	</p><p>Later, he made a resolution: Never EVER sleep in Tartarus. 
	</p><p>In hindsight, that should have been obvious. 
	</p><p>Demigod dreams were always bad. Even in the safety of his bunk at camp, he’d almost always had horrible nightmares about Tia Callida or Gaea, or some premonition about what was to come. In Tartarus, they were a thousand times more vivid. 
	</p><p>He was a little kid again, walking with his mom out of the machine shop. He held her hand, and a smile was on his face, but there was this overwhelming sense of wrongness. He couldn’t shake it off. The shadows seemed to be reaching out towards him, and he gripped his mom tighter, as if she would vanish. 
	</p><p>They reached the break room, and his mother patted her pockets. She frowned. “That’s funny,” she said. “I know I had them.”
	</p><p>Leo knew she did too. He had seen her put them in her pocket before they left her workspace. But he didn’t say anything- his voice didn’t seem to work. She flashed him a smile, the last one he’d ever get. “Wait here, mijo. I’ll only be a minute.” 
</p><p>The interior door slammed shut, and the minutes seemed to stretch into hours. When Gaea appeared in front of him, Leo couldn’t hear himself over the roar of his own fear and anger rushing in his ears. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw his hand glow orange with flames. 
	</p><p>No, he said to himself. Not again. I can’t lose her again. 
	</p><p>But the warehouse was already burning down, and a sleepy smile spread across Gaea’s face as she was swallowed in flames. It was too late.
	</p><p>The scene shifted. 
	</p><p>Leo was older, climbing to the summit of Half-Blood Hill, where the pine tree that marked the defensive border stood. Overhead, a storm was raging. 
	</p><p>Thunder shook the valley. A blast of lightning split the tree down to its roots, opening a smoking crevice. In the darkness below stood Reyna, the praetor of New Rome, and Leo winced. She didn’t exactly bring back the best memories. Leo hadn’t meant to set New Rome on fire and start an all out demigod war…
	</p><p>She was dressed for battle. Her cloak was the color of fresh blood, which did not relax Leo at all. Her gold armor glinted with every flash of lightning. She stared up, her face regal and distant, and spoke directly into Leo’s mind, never once moving her lips.
	</p><p>“I must stand here,” Reyna said, but it wasn’t her voice. Distantly, somehow, Leo knew it was a goddess. Athena. “The Roman must bring me. The rest of my journey must be on the wings of Rome.”
</p><p>The hill shook. The ground rippled as the grass became folds of silk- the dress of a massive goddess. Gaea rose over Camp Half-Blood, her sleeping face as large as any mountain.
</p><p>Hellhounds poured over the hills. Giants, six-armed Earthborn, and wild cyclops charged from the beach, tearing down the dining pavilion, setting fire to the cabins and the Big House. 
</p><p>“Hurry,” said the voice of Athena. “The message must be sent.” 
</p><p>The ground split at Leo’s feet and he fell into darkness.
</p><p>His eyes flew open. He let out a startled gasp and flailed his arms wildly, trying to ground himself. Frank grabbed his shoulders and steadied him, sitting him up. </p><p>He let out heaving breaths, getting his bearings. He was still in Tartarus, at the shrine of Hermes. 
</p><p>“It’s okay,” Frank promised. “Nightmare?” He asked. 
</p><p>Leo’s body tingled with dread. “Is it- is it my turn to watch?” 
</p><p>Frank didn’t push Leo any farther, and Leo was grateful. Frank shook his head. “No, no. We’re good. I let you sleep.” 
</p><p>Leo gave him a stern look, which Frank shrugged off, though he looked a little sheepish. “Hey, it’s fine. Besides, I was too excited to sleep. Look.” 
</p><p>Bob the Titan sat cross-legged by the altar, happily munching a piece of pizza. 
</p><p>Leo rubbed his eyes, wondering if he was still dreaming, because there was no way… “Is that pineapple on pizza?” 
</p><p>“Burnt offerings,” Frank said. “Sacrifices to Hermes from the mortal world, I guess. They appeared in a cloud of smoke. We’ve got half a hot dog, some grapes, a plate of roast beef, and a package of peanut M&amp;M’s.” 
</p><p>“M&amp;M’s for Bob!” Bob said happily. “Uh, that okay?” 
</p><p>Leo didn’t protest. He didn’t like peanuts and chocolate together.
</p><p>Frank brought him the plate of roast beef, and he wolfed it down. The brisket was still hot, with exactly the same spicy sweet glaze as the barbecue at… “Camp Half-Blood,” Leo said. 
</p><p>Frank gave him a puzzled look, and Leo flushed slightly. “It tastes like the roast beef from camp.” He explained. “Every meal, we’re supposed to burn a portion of our food to honor our parents. The smoke supposedly pleases the gods, or something,” Leo said. He was sure Frank knew all this, but he just nodded along and let him continue. “But I never thought about where the food went when it was burned. They must appear on the gods’ altars in Olympus… or wherever their altar is.” 
</p><p>“I guess…” Frank said. He put his hand on his shoulder. “Wherever it came from, it’s food. Real, good food.” 
</p><p>Leo nodded. They finished eating in silence.
</p><p>Bob chomped down the last of his M&amp;M’s and shoved the wrapper in his pocket. Should stand to reason that the janitor would refuse to litter, even in Tartarus. “Should go now. They will be here in a few minutes.” 
</p><p>“A few minutes?” Leo felt a familiar tingling in his fingers as they started to light, but he remembered his dream, and diffused the flame before it could start. 
</p><p>“Yes… Well, I think minutes…” Bob scratched his silvery hair. “Time is hard in Tartarus. Not the same.”
</p><p>Frank crept to the edge of the crater. He peered back the way they’d come. “I don't see anything, but that doesn’t mean much. Bob, which giants are we talking about? Which Titans?” 
</p><p>Bob grunted. “Not sure of names. Six, maybe seven. I can sense them.” 
</p><p>“Six or seven,” Leo repeated. He wasn’t sure if his barbeque would stay down. “Fantastic. And can they sense you?” 
</p><p>“Don’t know.” Bob smiled. “Bob is different! But they can smell demigods, yes. You two smell very strong. Good strong. Like… Hmmm. Like buttery bread!” 
</p><p>“Buttery bread,” Leo said. “Well, that’s great.” 
</p><p>Frank climbed back to the altar. “Is it possible to kill a giant in Tartarus? I mean, since we don’t have a god to help us?” 
</p><p>He looked at Leo as if he actually had an answer. 
</p><p>“I don’t know. I’m not even usually the fighter. Maybe Bob could help us kill a giant? Maybe a Titan would count as a god? I just don’t know, man.” 
</p><p>“Yeah,” Frank said. “Okay.” 
</p><p>Leo could see the worry in his eyes, and it devastated him, but he didn’t have the answers. He wasn’t the smart one, that was Annabeth. He just… fixed things, figured out how they worked. But remembering them, problem solving real life? He couldn’t do that. The only thing he was sure of was that they had to keep moving. They couldn’t be caught by six or seven hostile immortals. 
</p><p>He stood, still disoriented by his nightmare. Bob started cleaning up, collecting their trash into a little pile, using his squirt bottle to wipe off the altar. 
</p><p>“Where to now?” Leo asked. 
</p><p>Frank pointed into the stormy wall of darkness. “Bob says that way. Apparently the Doors of Death-”
</p><p>“You told him?” Leo asked incredulously. Frank had seemed so cautious of Bob, he hadn’t expected him to share their destination. Frank smiled sheepishly. 
</p><p>“While you were asleep,” He admitted. “We need a guide.”
</p><p>“Bob helps!” Bob agreed. “Into the Dark Lands. The Doors of Death… Hmm, walking straight to them would be bad. Too many monsters gathered there. Even Bob could not sweep that many. They would kill Friends of Percy in about two seconds.” The Titan frowned. “I think seconds. Time is hard in Tartarus.”
</p><p>“Right,” Frank said uneasily. “So is there another way?” 
</p><p>“Hiding,” said Bob. “The Death Mist could hide you.” 
</p><p>Leo suddenly felt very small in the shadow of the Titan. “Oh… Uh, what is Death Mist?” 
</p><p>“It is dangerous,” Bob said. “But if the lady will give you Death Mist, it might hide you. If we can avoid Night. The lady is very close to Night. That is bad.” 
</p><p>“The lady,” Leo repeated. 
</p><p>“Yes.” Bob pointed ahead of them into the inky blackness. “We should go.” 
</p><p>Frank glanced at Leo, probably hoping for some guidance, but he had none. He was thinking about his nightmare- the pine tree splintered by lightning, Gaea rising on the hill side and unleashing her monsters on Camp Half-Blood. 
</p><p>Onto his home. The only home he’d had since his mother died.
</p><p>“Okay, then,” Frank said. “I guess we’ll see some lady about some death Mist.”
</p><p>“Wait,” Leo said. 
</p><p>His mind was buzzing. He stared at the altar, and absent mindedly began to tap on his leg. I love you. Then his mind cleared. 
</p><p>“Leo?” Frank sounded concerned. 
</p><p>He walked to the pile of trash and picked out a reasonably clean paper napkin. 
</p><p>He remembered his vision of Reyna, standing in the smoking crevice beneath the ruins of the pine tree, speaking the the voice that he somehow knew was Athena’s: 
</p><p>“I must stand here. The Roman must bring me.”
</p><p>“Hurry. The message must be sent.” 
</p><p>“Bob,” he said, “offerings burned in the mortal world appear on this altar, right?”
</p><p>Bob frowned uncomfortably, like he wasn’t ready for a pop quiz. “Yes?” 
</p><p>“So what happens if I burn something on the altar here?”
</p><p>“Uh…” 
</p><p>“That’s alright,” Leo said. “You don’t know. Nobody knows, because it’s never been done.” 
</p><p>But there was a chance, he thought, just the slimmest chance that an offering burned on this altar might appear at Camp Half-Blood. Like a cell-phone. Like a two way radio. Like his mom and him tapping back and forth I love you to each other on the walls of the workshop. Two way communication. 
</p><p>Doubtful, but if it did work…
</p><p>“Leo, what are you planning?” Frank asked. 
</p><p>“I need a pen,” Leo said absently, reaching into his toolbelt. The pen he pulled out wasn’t exactly what he wanted- it was a glittery purple gel pen- but it would have to do. It seemed that Tartarus was still interfering with the magic of his toolbelt. Or his belt was screwing with him. 
</p><p>He flattened the napkin against the altar and began to write. 
</p><p>“What are you doing?” Frank asked. 
</p><p>“Sending a message,” Leo said. “I just hope Chiron or Rachel gets it.”
</p><p>Frank gave him a puzzled look. “What are you talking about?” 
</p><p>“I’m going to burn this napkin to send a message back to Camp. Hopefully, whoever finds it will give it to Chiron or Rachel. They’re kinda the ones in charge. Maybe-” 
</p><p>“You’re going to burn the napkin? On this side? To get it to your camp? But we have no idea if that will work, or even if that altar is connected to Camp Half-Blood, or-” 
</p><p>“Peanut M&amp;M’s.” Leo answered simply, continuing to write. 
</p><p>“What?” 
</p><p>“Connor Stoll. He’s a Hermes kid. He always burns a pack for his dad at dinner.” He looked up from the napkin he was writing on to Frank. “And I know we have no proof that it will work, but… It’s our best shot. Okay?” 
</p><p>Leo finished his note in silence, Frank not seeming willing to argue anymore, and folded the napkin. On the outside, he wrote:

</p>
<p>Give to Chiron or Rachel. Don’t be a moron.
</p><p>Leo

</p>
<p>He took a deep breath.  He was asking the camp to do something ridiculously dangerous, but it was the only way he could think of to communicate with the Romans- the only way that might avoid bloodshed. The bloodshed that he started. 
</p><p>“Now, I just need to burn it.” 
</p><p>With some hesitation, Leo lit the tips of his fingers on fire and pressed them to the altar, causing it to erupt in flame. He placed that napkin on the altar. He watched it crumble to ash and wondered if he was crazy. Could the smoke really make it out of Tartarus?
</p><p>“We should go now,” Bob advised. “Really, really go. Before we are killed.” 
</p><p>Leo stared at the wall of blackness in front of them. Somewhere in there was a lady who dispensed a Death Mist that might hide them from monsters- a plan recommended by a Titan, who demigods had fought against only a few years ago. Another dose of weirdness to explode his brain. 
</p><p>“Right,” he said. “I’m ready.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Leo</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Leo literally stumbled over the second Titan.</p><p>After entering the storm front, they plodded on for what seemed like hours, relying on the light that Leo’s flames gave off, though the storm would periodically snuff them out, and Bob, who glowed faintly in the dark like some sort of crazy janitor angel. 
	</p>
<p>Even with his fire, Leo could only see about five feet in front of him. Rocks loomed out of nowhere. Pits appeared at their feet, and he barely avoided falling in. Monstrous roars echoed in the gloom, but Leo couldn’t tell what direction they came from. All he could be certain of was that the terrain was still sloping down. 
	</p>
<p>Down seemed to be the only direction allowed in Tartarus. If Leo backtracked even a step, he felt tired and gravy, as if gravity were increasing to discourage him. Assuming that the entire pit was the body of Tartarus, Leo had a nasty feeling they were marching straight down his throat. 
	</p>
<p>He was so preoccupied with that thought, he didn’t notice the ledge until it was too late. 
	</p>
<p>Frank yelled, “Whoa!” He grabbed for his arm, but Leo was already falling.
	</p>
<p>Fortunately, it was only a shallow depression. Most of it was filled with a monster blister. He had a soft landing on a warm bouncy surface and was feeling a bit lucky- until he opened his eyes and found himself staring through a glowing gold membrane at another, much larger face, and remembered that “lucky” wasn’t a part of his vocabulary. 
	</p>
<p>He screamed and flailed, toppling sideways off the mound. His heart did a hundred jumping jacks.
	</p>
<p>Frank helped him to his feet. “You okay?” He asked, bracing Leo with his hands on his shoulders. 
	</p>
<p>He didn’t trust himself to answer. If he opened his mouth, he might scream again, and that would be undignified. He wasn’t some shrill girlie victim in a horror movie. 
	</p>
<p>But Holy Hephaestus… Curled in the membrane bubble in front of him was a fully formed Titan in golden armor, his skin the color of polished pennies. His eyes were closed, but he scowled so deeply he appeared to be on the verge of a bloodcurdling war cry. Even through the blister, Leo could feel the heat radiating off his body, and he was sure the blister would pop any second. 
	</p>
<p>Frank looked at the blister with a reserved look, though there could have been anger behind it. “Hyperion,” He said. 
	</p>
<p>Leo looked over, silently asking for Frank to explain how he knew. Frank didn’t look back at him. “When the Titans rose, when Jason went to the palace of Kronos, all of us in New Rome got a crash course in Titans, in case we had to go out as back up, or the Titans made it to the camp. Hyperion’s the Titan of the east, fire and light.” 
	</p>
<p>Leo decided he didn’t like the sound of that. He was about to suggest that they burst Hyperion’s bubble before he woke up. Then he glanced at Bob. The silvery Titan was studying Hyperion with a frown of concentration- maybe recognition. Their faces looked so much alike… Take away Bob’s broom and his janitor clothes, put him in armor and cut his hair, change his color scheme from silver to gold, and he would have been almost indistinguishable from Hyperion. Something about that gave Leo a very bad feeling. 
	</p>
<p>“Bob,” Leo said, “We should go.” 
	</p>
<p>“Gold, not silver,” Bob murmured. “But he looks like me.” 
	</p>
<p>Frank sighed and grimaced slightly. “Bob,” He said. “Over here. I want to talk to you.” 
	</p>
<p>The Titan reluctantly turned. 
	</p>
<p>“Is Percy your friend?” Frank asked. 
	</p>
<p>“Yes.”
	</p>
<p>“Are we your friends?” Frank gestured to himself and Leo. Bob shifted from his right foot to his left. 
	</p>
<p>“Yes.” Bob sounded dangerously uncertain. “Friends of Percy are Friends of Bob.” 
	</p>
<p>“You know that some monsters are good,” Frank said. “And some are bad.” 
	</p>
<p>“Hmmm,” Bob said. “Like… The pretty ghost ladies who serve Persephone are good. Exploding zombies are bad.”
	</p>
<p>“Right,” Frank nodded. “And some mortals are good, and some are bad. Well, the same is true for Titans.” 
	</p>
<p>“Titans…” Bob loomed over them, glowering. Leo wasn’t sure what Frank had done, but he was pretty sure whatever it was was a big mistake. 
	</p>
<p>“That’s what you are,” Frank continued calmly. “Bob the Titan. You’re good. You’re Percy’s friend, you’re our friend. You save our lives, more than once. But some Titans are not. This one, Hyperion, is not. He’s bad. He tried to kill alot of people.”
	</p>
<p>Bob blinked his silver eyes. “But he looks… His face is so-”
	</p>
<p>“He looks like you,” Frank agreed. “He’s a Titan, like you. But he’s not good like you are.” 
	</p>
<p>“Bob is good.” His fingers tightened on his broom handle. “Yes. There is always at least one good one- monsters, Titans, giants.” 
		</p>
<p>Leo sensed they’d already been in this place too long. Their pursuers would be closing in soon. 
	</p>
<p>“We should go,” He urged. “What do we do about…?” 
	</p>
<p>“Bob,” Frank said, “It’s your call. Hyperion is your kind. We could leave him alone, but if he wakes up-”
	</p>
<p>Bob’s broom-spear swept into motion. If he’d been aiming at Leo or Frank, they would’ve been cut in half. Instead, Bob slashed through the monstrous blister, which burst in a geyser of hot golden mud. 
	</p>
<p>Leo wiped the Titan sludge out of his eyes. Where Hyperion had been, there was nothing but a smoking crater. 
	</p>
<p>“Hyperion is a bad Titan,” Bob announced, his expression grim. “Now he can’t hurt my friends. He will have to re-form somewhere else in Tartarus. Hopefully it will take a long time.” 
	</p>
<p>The Titan’s eyes seemed brighter than usual, as if he were about to cry quicksilver. 
	</p>
<p>“Thank you, Bob,” Frank said. 
	</p>
<p>How was he keeping his cool? The way Frank talked to Bob left Leo awestruck… and maybe a little uneasy too. He met his eyes, but Leo couldn’t read his expression. That bothered him more than he would have liked to admit.
	</p>
<p>“We’d better keep going,” Frank said. 
	</p>
<p>Leo and Frank followed Bob, the golden mud flecks from Hyperion’s burst bubble glowing on his janitor’s uniform. 
</p>
<p>----------
	</p>
<p>After a while, Leo’s feet felt like Titan mush. He marched along, following Bob, listening to the monotonous slosh of liquid in his cleaning bottle.
	</p>
<p>Stay alert, he told himself, but it was hard. His thoughts were as numb as his legs. From time to time, Frank would flash him a smile or make an encouraging comment, but he could tell the dark landscape was getting to him as well. His eyes had a dull sheen, and his smile seemed more strained everytime- like his spirit was being slowly extinguished. 
	</p>
<p>He fell into Tartarus because of you, said a voice in his head. Because you didn’t check to make sure all the webs were caught. Because you asked him to fly you down there. If he dies, if he can’t get back to Hazel, it will be your fault. 
	</p>
<p>“Stop it,” he murmured aloud, but it came out much louder in the deafening silence of Tartarus. 
	</p>
<p>Frank frowned. “What?”
	</p>
<p>“No, not you.” He tried for a reassuring smile, but it felt strained, and he was sure it looked it too. “Talking to myself. This place… It’s messing with my mind.” He forced out a laugh. “I always knew I would be the first to crack.” 
	</p>
<p>The worry lines deepened around Frank’s eyes. “Hey, Bob, where exactly are we heading?” 
	</p>
<p>“The lady,” Bob said. “Death Mist.” 
	</p>
<p>Leo fought down his irritation. “But what does that mean? Who is this lady?” 
	</p>
<p>“Naming her?” Bob glanced back. “Not a good idea.” 
	</p>
<p>Leo huffed. He knew the Titan was right. Gaea had always had a tendency to pop up whenever someone said her name, and Annabeth had said something once about “names having power”. That was probably true even in Tartarus. Maybe even more so. But still…
	</p>
<p>“Can you at least tell us how far?” He asked. Distantly, he realised he sounded like a whiny child on a car ride or something, but he didn’t care. His feet hurt, and this darkness was really getting to him. It suffocated his flames, putting them out the second he lit his hand, and that put him on edge. 
	</p>
<p>“I do not know,” Bob admitted. “I can only feel it. We wait for the darkness to get darker. Then we go sideway.” 
	</p>
<p>“Sideways,” Leo muttered. “Naturally.”
	</p>
<p>He was tempted to ask for a rest, but he didn’t want to stop. Not here in this cold, dark place. The black fog seeped into his body, turning his bones into Styrofoam. 
	</p>
<p>He wondered if his message would get to Rachel. If she could somehow carry her proposal to Reyan without getting killed in the process…
	</p>
<p>A ridiculous hope, said the voice in his head. You have only put Rachel in danger. Put the camp in danger. Even if she finds the Romans, why should Reyna trust you after all that you did?
	</p>
<p>Leo felt his heart sink. He didn’t know Rachel particularly well, but she had issued the original prophecy that sent him, Jason and Piper on their first quest. And she had helped him with research on the original Argo so as he was building his ship. They were never close, but she had never seemed scared of him like the other campers had when they discovered his fire. And if he had given her a death sentence…
	</p>
<p>Leo wanted to shout back at the voice, tell it it was wrong, that Rachel would succeed, but he resisted. Even if he were going crazy, he didn’t want to look like he was. 
	</p>
<p>He desperately needed something to lift his spirits. A drink of actual water. A moment of sunlight. A warm bed. A kind word from his friends.
	</p>
<p>Suddenly, Bob stopped. He raised his hand: Wait. 
	</p>
<p>“What?” Frank whispered. 
	</p>
<p>“Shh,” Bob warned. “Ahead. Something moves.” 
	</p>
<p>Leo strained his ears. From somewhere in the fog came a deep thrumming noise, like the idling engine of a large construction vehicle. He could feel the vibrations through his shoes. 
	</p>
<p>“We will surround it,” Bob whispered. “Each of you, take a flank.” 
	</p>
<p>Leo tried to light a flame again, but his fire sputtered out in the dense black fog. He grimaced and reached into his toolbelt, summoning a hammer. Instead, he retrieved a tiny mallet for banging out dents. He scowled and tossed it over his shoulder, choosing instead to just pick up a jagged chuck of black obsidian and crept to the left. Something was still interfering with magic. Frank had gone right, choosing a similar approach, picking up a piece of obsidian that was sharpened into a point almost like a knife. 
	</p>
<p>Bob took the middle, his spearhead glowing in the fog.
	</p>
<p>The humming got louder, shaking the gravel at Leo’s feet. The noise seemed to be coming from immediately in front of them. 
	</p>
<p>“Ready?” Bob murmured.
	</p>
<p>Frank crouched, looking ready to pounce. “On three?”
	</p>
<p>“One,” Leo whispered. “Two-”
	</p>
<p>A figure appeared in the fog. Bob raised his spear. 
	</p>
<p>“Wait!” Frank yelled, dropping his rock. 
	</p>
<p>Bob froze just in time, the point of his spear hovering an inch above the head of a tiny calico kitten. 
	</p>
<p>“Rrow?” Said the kitten, clearly unimpressed by their attack plan. It butted its head against Bob’s foot and purred loudly. 
	</p>
<p>It seemed impossible, but the deep rumbling sound was coming from the kitten. As it purred, the ground vibrated and pebbles danced. The kitten fixed its yellow, lamp-like eyes on one particular rock, right between Leo’s feet, and pounced. 
	</p>
<p>The cat could’ve been a demon or a horrible Underworld monster in disguise. But Leo couldn’t help it. He picked it up and cuddled it. The little thing was bony under its fur, but otherwise it seemed perfectly normal. It radiated warmth in the cold, dark fog. 
	</p>
<p>“How did…?” Frank stared at the kitten in Leo’s arms in wonder. “What is a kitten doing…?” 
	</p>
<p>The cat grew impatient and squirmed out of his arms. It landed with a thump, padded over to Bob, and started purring again as it rubbed against his boots. 
	</p>
<p>Leo laughed. “Somebody likes you, Bob.” 
	</p>
<p>“It must be a good monster.” Bob looked up nervously. “Isn’t it?”
	</p>
<p>Leo suddenly felt a lump in his throat. Seeing the huge Titan and this tiny kitten together, he suddenly felt insignificant compared to the vastness of Tartarus. This place had no respect for anything- good or bad, large or small, wise or unwise. Tartarus swallowed Titans and demigods and kittens indiscriminately. 
	</p>
<p>Bob knelt down and scooped up the cat. It fit perfectly in Bob’s palm, but it decided to explore. It climbed the Titan’s arm, made itself home on his shoulder, and closed its eyes, purring like an earthmover. Suddenly its fur shimmered. In a flash, the kitten had become a ghostly skeleton, as if it had stepped behind an X-ray machine. Then it was a regular kitten again. 
	</p>
<p>Leo blinked. “Did you see-?” 
	</p>
<p>“It’s like Gray.” Frank said suddenly. Leo looked at him quizzically. “Gray was a Spartoi, and grew from a dragon tooth once it was planted in the ground. He wasn’t alive, but he wasn’t… dead. He was somewhere between, until he finished his task. His skin was transparent, and sometimes I could only see bones. I think this cat… I think it's some kind of Spartoi.”
	</p>
<p>Leo looked between the kitten and Frank. “That’s a Spartoi? How did it get here?”
	</p>
<p>Frank spread his hands helplessly. “Maybe it got killed in combat and was reborn in Tartarus? I don’t know.” 
	</p>
<p>“It’s cute,” Bob said, as the kitten sniffed his ear. 
	</p>
<p>“But is it safe?” Leo asked. 
	</p>
<p>The Titan scratched the kitten’s chin. Leo didn’t know if it was a good idea, carrying around a cat Spartoi that could take orders to kill them at any moment; but obviously it didn’t matter now. The Titan and the cat had bonded. 
	</p>
<p>“I will call him Small Bob,” Said Bob. “He is a good monster.” 
	</p>
<p>End of discussion. The Titan hefted his spear and they continued marching into the gloom. 
</p>
<p>----------
	</p>
<p>Leo walked in a daze, trying not to think about pizza. To keep himself distracted, he watched Small Bob the kitten pacing across Bob’s shoulders and purring, occasionally turning into a glowing kitty skeleton and then back to a calico fuzz-ball. 
	</p>
<p>“Here,” Bob announced. 
	</p>
<p>He stopped so suddenly, Leo almost ran into him.
	</p>
<p>Bob stared off to their left, as if deep in thought. 
	</p>
<p>“Is this the place,” Leo asked. “Where we go sideways?” 
	</p>
<p>“Yes,” Bob agreed. “Darker, then sideways.”
	</p>
<p>Leo couldn’t tell if it was actually darker, but the air did seem colder and thicker, as if they’d stepped into a different microclimate. 
	</p>
<p>Bob struck off to the left. They followed. The air definitely got colder, which Leo did not appreciate. He subconsciously pressed against Frank for warmth, and didn't notice he had until Frank put his arm around him. It was a kind gesture, and it did provide some comfort, but Leo couldn’t relax. 
	</p>
<p>They’d entered some sort of forest. Towering black trees soared into the gloom, perfectly round and bare of branches like monstrous hair follicles. The ground was smooth and pale. 
	</p>
<p>With our luck, Leo though, we’re marching through the armpit of Tartarus.
	</p>
<p>Suddenly, his senses were on high alert, as if somebody had snapped a rubber band against the base of his neck. He rested his hand on the trunk of the nearest tree. 
	</p>
<p>“What is it?” Frank asked.
	</p>
<p>Bob turned and looked back, confused. “We are stopping?”
	</p>
<p>Leo held up his hand for silence. He wasn’t sure what had sent him off. Nothing looked different, Then he realised the tree trunk was quivering. He wondered momentarily if it was the kitten’s purr; but Small Bob had fallen asleep on Large Bob’s shoulder. 
	</p>
<p>A few yards away, another tree shuddered. 
	</p>
<p>“Something’s moving above us,” Leo whispered. “Gather up.” 
	</p>
<p>Bob and Frank closed ranks with him, standing back to back. 
	</p>
<p>Leo strained his eyes, trying to see above them in the dark, but nothing moved. 
	</p>
<p>He had almost decided he was being paranoid when the first monster dropped to the ground only five feet away. 
</p>
<p>Leo’s first thought: Tia Rosa’s depictions of demons were spot on. 
	</p>
<p>The creature looked almost exactly like the demons his aunt would rant and rave about “infecting” him and making him a “troubled child”: a wrinkled hag with batlike wings, brass talons, and glowing red eyes. She wore a tattered dress of black silk, and her face was twisted and ravenous, like abuela was in the mood to kill. 
	</p>
<p>Bob grunted as another one dropped in front of him, and then another in front of Frank. Soon there were half a dozen surrounding them. More hissed in the trees above. 
	</p>
<p>The winged hags didn’t carry any weapons, not even a handbag to hit him with, but that didn’t comfort Leo any. The monsters’ talons looked plenty dangerous on their own. 
	</p>
<p>“What are you?” He demanded.
	</p>
<p>“The arai,” hissed a voice. “The curses!”
	</p>
<p>Leo tried to locate the speaker, but none of the demons had moved their mouths. Their eyes looked dead; their expressions were frozen, like a puppet’s. The voice simply floated overhead like a movie narrators, as if a single mind controlled all the creatures. 
	</p>
<p>“What do you want?” Frank asked. He sounded a lot more confident than Leo felt.
	</p>
<p>The voice cackled maliciousl. “To curse you, of course! To destroy you a thousand times in the name of Mother Night!” 
	</p>
<p>“Only a thousand times?” Leo murmured. “Oh, good… I thought we were in trouble.” 
	</p>
<p>The circle of demon ladies closed in.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0016"><h2>16. Hazel</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hazel had decided, very quickly, that she did not like Venice. Two days after leaving, Percy still trailed around the noxious scent of eau de cow monster everywhere he went, and after Coach Hedge had gotten a strong whiff and thought a monster had infiltrated the ship and tried to fight Percy, he had been quarantined to his room.</p><p>Hazel felt bad for him, but she was grateful. The smell really hadn’t been helping her seasickness. 
	</p>
<p>The Argo II sailed down the Adriatic, a beautiful glittering expanse of blue; but Hazel couldn’t appreciate it, thanks to the constant rolling of the ship. Above deck, she tried to keep her eyes fixed on the horizon- the white cliffs that always seemed just a mile or so to the east. But that only made her more sad, than anything. It had been Leo who had given her that advice to prevent her seasickness when they first started sailing. She just wished she were on solid ground again. 
	</p>
<p>The thing that nauseated her most was the weasel. 
	</p>
<p>Last night, Hecate’s pet Gale had appeared in her cabin. Hazel woke from a nightmare, thinking, What is that smell? She found a furry rodent propped on her chest, staring at her with it’s beady black eyes. 
	</p>
<p>Nothing like waking up screaming, kicking off your covers, and dancing around your cabin while a weasel scampers between your feet, screeching and farting.
	</p>
<p>Her friends rushed to her room to see if she was okay. Percy’s smell did not help with the already noxious scent of the polecat. The weasel was difficult to explain. Hazel could see that they were trying very hard not to laugh, and Hazel didn’t really mind. She hadn’t seen them all so relaxed in so long. Even if it was at her expense, she was glad they could laugh again, even just for a minute.
	</p>
<p>In the morning, once the excitement died down, Hazel decided to visit Coach Hedge, since he could talk to animals.
	</p>
<p>She’d found his cabin door ajar and heard the coach inside, talking as if he were on the phone with someone- except they had no phones on board. Maybe he was sending a magical Iris-message? Hazel had heard that the Greeks used those a lot. 
	</p>
<p>“Sure, hon,” Hedge was saying. “Yeah, I know, baby. No, it’s great news, but-” His voice broke with emotion. Hazel suddenly felt horrible for eavesdropping.
	</p>
<p>She would have backed away, but Gale squeaked at her heels. Hazel knocked on the coach’s door. 
	</p>
<p>Hedge poked his head out, scowling as usual, but his eyes were red.
	</p>
<p>“What?” He growled. 
	</p>
<p>“Um… Sorry,” Hazel said. “Are you okay?” 
	</p>
<p>The coach snorted and opened his door wide. “Kinda question is that?”
	</p>
<p>There was no one else in the room. 
	</p>
<p>“I-” Hazel tried to remember why she was there. “I wondered if you could talk to my weasel?” 
	</p>
<p>The coach’s eyes narrowed. He lowered his voice. “Are we speaking in code? Is there an intruder aboard?” 
	</p>
<p>“Well, sort of.”
	</p>
<p>Gale peeked out from behind Hazel’s feet and started chattering. Hazel got the impression she was being told off for calling the weasel an intruder. 
	</p>
<p>The coach looked offended. He chattered back at the weasel. They had what sounded like a very intense argument. 
	</p>
<p>“What did she say?” Hazel asked. 
	</p>
<p>“A lot of rude things,” grumbled the satyr. “The gist of it: she’d here to see how it goes.” 
	</p>
<p>“How what goes?”
	</p>
<p>Coach Hedge stomped his hoof. “How am I supposed to know? She’s a polecat! They never give a straight answer. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got, uh, stuff…” 
	</p>
<p>He closed the door in her face.
</p>
<p>----------
	</p>
<p>After breakfast, Hazel stood at the port rail, trying to settle her stomach. Next to her, Gale ran up and down the railing, passing gas; but the strong wind off the Adriatic helped whisk it away. 
	</p>
<p>Hazel wondered what was wrong with Coach Hedge. He must have been using an Iris-message to talk with someone, but if he’d gotten great news, why had he looked so devastated? She’d never seen him so shaken up. Unfortunately, she doubted the coach would ask for help if he needed it. He didn’t exactly seem like the warm and open type. 
	</p>
<p>She stared at the white cliffs in the distance and thought about why Hecate had sent Gale the polecat. 
	</p>
<p>She’s here to see how it goes.
	</p>
<p>Something was about to happen. Hazel would be tested. 
	</p>
<p>She didn’t understand how she was supposed to learn magic with no training. Hecate expected her to defeat some super-powerful sorceress- the lady in the golden dress, whom Annabeth had described in her dream. But how?
	</p>
<p>Hazel had spent nearly all of her free time trying to figure that out. She’d stared at her spatha, trying to make it look like a walking stick. She’d tried to summon a cloud to hide the full moon. She’d concentrated until her eyes crossed and her ears popped, but nothing happened. She couldn’t manipulate the Mist.
	</p>
<p>The last few nights, her dreams had gotten worse. She found herself back in the Fields of Asphodel, drifting aimlessly among the ghosts. Leo and Frank were there too, lost and empty souls that never made it out of Tartarus as heroes. They would see her, but they looked right through her, like they didn’t know her or recognise her, the same way her mother had. Then she was in Gaea’s cave in Alaska, where Hazel and her mother had died as the ceiling collapsed and the voice of the Earth Goddess wailed in anger. She was on the stairs of her mother’s apartment building in New Orleans, face-to-face with her father, Pluto. His cold fingers gripped her arm. The fabric of his black wool suit writhed with imprisoned souls. He fixed her with his dark and angry eyes and said: The dead see what they believe they will see. So do the living. That is the secret. 
	</p>
<p>He’d never said that to her in real life. She had no idea what it meant. 
	</p>
<p>The worst nightmares seemed like glimpses of the future. Hazel was stumbling through a dark tunnel while a woman’s laughter echoed around her. 
	</p>
<p>“Control this if you can, child of Pluto,” the woman taunted. 
	</p>
<p>And always, Hazel dreamed about the images she’d seen at Hecate’s crossroads: Annabeth falling through the sky, Leo and Frank lying unconscious, possible dead, in front of black metal doors; and a shrouded figure looming above them- the giant Clytius wrapped in darkness. 
	</p>
<p>Next to her on the rail, Gale the weasel chittered impatiently. Hazel was tempted to push the stupid rodent into the sea. 
	</p>
<p>I can’t even control my own dreams, she wanted to scream. How am I supposed to control the Mist?
	</p>
<p>She was so miserable, she didn’t notice Annabeth until she was standing at her side. 
	</p>
<p>“Hey. How are you feeling?” 
	</p>
<p>Annabeth offered Hazel a smile, but it looked slightly strained. Hazel couldn’t blame her. It was always unnerving to receive a “blessing” from your godly parent. It meant something big was happening. 
	</p>
<p>What Annabeth had done on that bridge in Venice… Hazel was still in awe. None of them had actually seen the battle, but no one doubted it. Hazel had always kind of looked up to Annabeth. She was a strong fighter and leader, and she didn’t let her past hold her back. 
	</p>
<p>Not like Hazel did. 
	</p>
<p>“I-I’m alright,” Hazel managed. “You?”
	</p>
<p>Annabeth waved away the question. “I’m fine. I didn’t get a blast of monster breath to the face or get turned into a corn plant.” 
	</p>
<p>Hazel thought that was irrelevant, but she didn’t push. “How’s Percy?”
	</p>
<p>Annabeth gave another smile, this one slightly less forced. “He feels a little nauseous from time to time, but he insists he can still keep watch and fight.” She shook her head, somewhere between aggravation, dismay, and affection for her boyfriend. “And how’s Nico?”
	</p>
<p>She followed Annabeth’s gaze to the top of the foremast, where Nico was perched on the yardarm. 
	</p>
<p>Nico claimed that he liked to keep watch because he had good eyes. Hazel knew that wasn’t the reason. The top of the mast was one of the few places on board where Nico could be alone. The other’s had offered him the use of Leo’s cabin since Leo was… well, absent. Nico had adamantly refused. He spent most of his time up in the rigging, where he didn’t have to talk with the rest of the crew. 
	</p>
<p>Since he’d been turned into a corn plant in Venice, he’d only gotten more reclusive and morose. 
	</p>
<p>“I don’t know,” Hazel admitted. “He’s been through a lot. Getting captured in Tartarus, being held prisoner in that bronze jar, watching Leo and Frank fall…”
	</p>
<p>“And promising to lead us to Epirus.” Annabeth nodded. “He’s so different than how he was when Percy and I first met him.”
	</p>
<p>“Nico is my only relative,” she said. “He’s not easy to like, but…” Haze smiled at Annabeth. “Thanks for being kind to him.”
	</p>
<p>Annabeth smiled back, and Hazel saw a glint of humor in her grey eyes. “I know a thing or two about not easy to like relatives.” 
	</p>
<p>Piper walked up to them, stretching her arms out above her head. Hazel gave her a confused look. 
	</p>
<p>“Piper? Aren’t you steering?”
	</p>
<p>Piper shrugged. “We’re on a pretty open stretch right now. I figured I could take a five minute break. Annabeth, have you told her yet?” Annabeth shook her head. 
	</p>
<p>“I wanted to wait for you. You’re more…. Delicate about these sorts of things.” 
	</p>
<p>Hazel looked between the two. “Told me what?”
	</p>
<p>Piper gave Hazel a sad smile. 
	</p>
<p>“While we were in Venice, Annabeth and I started going over the prophecy some more to see if there was anything we missed. Anything that might help us.”
	</p>
<p>“Shouldn’t we have talked about this over breakfast? Shouldn’t the whole crew know about whatever you two discovered?” Hazel asked. 
	</p>
<p>“About that… It’s about Leo and Frank,” Annabeth said. Hazel could feel her heart stop. “We wanted to talk to you about it first before we told everyone else.”
	</p>
<p>“What is it?” Hazel asked. Her voice came out much more calm than she felt. 
	</p>
<p>“It doesn’t sound like the most important information right now, but who knows. Later on, it could end up being very valuable-” Annabeth continued.
	</p>
<p>“What. Is it.” Hazel asked again. 
	</p>
<p>“We think that Leo and Frank falling into Tartarus was unavoidable.” Piper said. 
	</p>
<p>“The Doors have to be closed from both sides, so naturally at least one demigod would have ended up in Tartarus, but… I think it had to be Leo and Frank for the prophecy to be fulfilled.” Annabeth continued. “That final line, ‘And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death’, we just assumed that it meant Romans and Greeks working together to close the Doors, but it goes much deeper than that.”
</p>
<p>“There needed to be a Roman and a Greek on the other side too. And Leo and Frank… They’ve always been the ones the most at odds with one another.” Piper said. “They’re dads don’t get along because of my mom, and they don’t get along because they’re both vying for your affection.” 
</p>
<p>“So… It had to happen like this? The Fates or something orchestrated this to happen?” Hazel asked. “It wasn’t just… because we couldn’t get there fast enough or poor luck?”
</p>
<p>Annabeth and Piper nodded. 
</p>
<p>Hazel wasn’t sure if this information made her feel better or worse. On one hand, that meant that it would have happened regardless, that it wasn’t her fault for not getting there quick enough.
</p>
<p>But on the other hand, Piper was right; she was the reason Frank and Leo didn’t get along. It was her fault they were at odds with each other and had fallen into Tartarus together. It could have been any pair otherwise. 
</p>
<p>Before she could fully decide how she felt, the boat suddenly lurched forward, and Gale started chittering excitedly. 
</p>
<p>----------
	</p>
<p>Hazel and Annabeth tumbled over each other, while Piper nearly fell right over the railing into the sea.. Hazel accidentally gave herself the Heimlich maneuver with the pommel of her sword and curled on the deck, moaning and coughing up the taste of beignets.
	</p>
<p>Through a fog of pain, she heard the ship’s figurehead, Festus the bronze dragon, creaking in alarm and shooting fire. 
	</p>
<p>Dimly, Hazel wondered if they’d hit an iceberg like the Titanic- her mom had always been terrified of sailing in steamships after she had heard of the ship sinking as a girl- but in the Adriatic, in the middle of summer? 
	</p>
<p>The ship rocked to port with a massive commotion, like telephone poles snapping in half.
	</p>
<p>“Gahh!” Piper yelled, somewhere behind her. “It’s eating the oars!” 
	</p>
<p>What is? Hazel wondered. She tried to stand, but felt something pinning her legs down. She realised it was Annabeth, grumbling as she tried to extract herself from a pile of loose rope. 
	</p>
<p>Everyone else was scrambling. Jason jumped over then, sword drawn, and raced toward the stern. Percy, despite instructions to stay in his room, was attempting to push back whatever was attacking them with massive waves, which only jostled the boat more. Piper was already racing up the stairs to the quarterdeck, shooting food from her cornucopia and yelling, “Hey! HEY! Eat this, ya stupis turtle!”
	</p>
<p>Turtle?
	</p>
<p>Annabeth helped Hazel to her feet. “You okay?”
	</p>
<p>“Yeah,” Hazel lied, clutching her stomach. “Go!” 
	</p>
<p>Annabeth didn’t hesitate. She sprinted up the steps towards the helm. She frantically worked at the ship's controls, brows furrowed and lips drawn into a tight frown. “Oars won’t retract. Get it away! Get it away before we sustain too much damage!” 
	</p>
<p>Up in the rigging, Nico’s face was slack with shock. 
	</p>
<p>“Styx- it’s huge!” He yelled. “Port. Go to port!” 
	</p>
<p>“I’m trying!” Annabeth yelled back angrily.
	</p>
<p>Coach Hedge was the last one on deck. He compensated for that with enthusiasm. He bounded up the steps, waving his baseball bat, and without hesitation goat-galloped to the stern and leaped over the rail with a gleeful “Ha-HA!” 
	</p>
<p>Hazel staggered towards the quarterdeck to join her friends. The boat shuddered. More oars snapped, and Annabeth yelled, “No, no, no! Gods of Olympus, we don’t have time to fix those!” 
	</p>
<p>Hazel reached the stern and couldn’t believe what she saw. 
	</p>
<p>When she heard the word turtle, she thought of a cute little thing the size of a jewelry box, sitting on a rock in the middle of a fishpond. When she heard huge, her mind tried to adjust- okay, perhaps it was like the Galapagos tortoise she’d seen in the zoo once, with a shell big enough to ride on.
	</p>
<p>She did not envision a creature the size of an island. When she saw the massive dome of craggy black and brown squares, the word turtle simply did not compute. Its shell was more like a landmass- hills of bone, shiny pearl valleys, kelp and moss forests, rivers of seawater trickling down the grooves of its carapace. 
	</p>
<p>On the ship’s starboard side, another part of the monster rose from the water like a submarine.
	</p>
<p>Lares of Rome… Was that its head?
	</p>
<p>Its gold eyes were the size of wading pools, with dark sideways slits for pupils. It’s skin glistened like wet army camouflage- brown flecked with green and yellow. It’s red, toothless mouth could have swallowed the Athena Parthenos in one bite. 
	</p>
<p>Hazel watched as it snapped off half a dozen oars. 
	</p>
<p>“Stop that!” Annabeth snapped. 
	</p>
<p>Coach Hedge clambered around the turtle’s shell, whacking at it uselessly with his baseball bat and yelling, “Take that, cupcake! And that!” 
	</p>
<p>Jason flew from the stern and landed on the creature’s head. He stabbed his golden sword straight between its eyes, but the blade slipped sideways, as if the turtle’s skin were made of steel. Piper shot yams and bell peppers at the monster’s eyes with no success. The turtle’s flimsy inner eyelids blinked with uncanny precision, deflecting each shot. Percy tried to push the monster away with waves, but it seemed to have no affect. The turtle seemed very fixated on eating the Argo II, and nothing seemed to be deterring him. 
	</p>
<p>“How did it get so close?” Hazel asked. “Piper, I thought you said we were on an open stretch?” 
	</p>
<p>“It’s not her fault,” Annabeth said. “It’s not showing up on the scanners. It must be the shell. It’s invisible to sonar.” 
	</p>
<p>“Can the ship fly?” Piper asked. 
	</p>
<p>“With half our oars broken off?” Annabeth sporadically pushed at the buttons on the control panel, with what seemed like no rhyme or reason. “I’ll have to try something else.” 
</p>
<p>“There!” Nico yelled from above. “Can you get us to those straits?”
</p>
<p>Hazel looked where he was pointing. About half a mile to the east, a long strip of land ran parallel to the coastal cliffs. It was hard to be sure from a distance, but the stretch of water between them looked to be only twenty to thirty yards across- possibly wide enough for the Argo II to slip through, but definitely not wide enough for a giant turtle’s shell.  
</p>
<p>“Yeah. Yeah.” Annabeth apparently understood. She started rummaging through a box that was under the control desk, filled with various tools and who knows what else. “Jason, get away from that thing’s head! I have an idea!” 
</p>
<p>Jason was still hacking away at the turtle’s face, but when he heard Annabeth say ‘I have an idea’, he made the only smart choice. He flew away as fast as possible. 
</p>
<p>“Coach, come on!” Jason said. 
</p>
<p>“No, I got this!” Hedge said, but Jason grabbed him around the waist and took off. Unfortunately, the coach struggled so much that Jason’s sword fell out of his hand and splashed into the sea. 
</p>
<p>“Coach!” Jason complained.  
</p>
<p>“What?” Hedge said. “I was softening him up!” 
</p>
<p>The turtle head-butted the hull, almost tossing the whole crew off the port side. Hazel heard a cracking sound, like the keel had splinter. 
</p>
<p>“Just another minute,” Annabeth said, her hands moving so rapidly that Hazel couldn’t tell what she was doing. 
</p>
<p>“We might not be here in another minute!” Percy yelled back at his girlfriend, summoning another wave to push the turtle back. This one was weaker, and Percy looked exhausted. 
</p>
<p>Piper yelled at the turtle, “Go away!” 
</p>
<p>For a moment, it actually worked. The turtle turned from the ship and dipped its head underwater. But then it came right back and rammed them even harder. 
</p>
<p>Jason and Coach Hedge landed on the deck. 
</p>
<p>“You alright?” Piper asked. 
</p>
<p>“Fine,” Jason muttered. “Without a weapon, but fine.” 
</p>
<p>“Duck!” Annabeth yelled. Everyone did so without a second thought. 
</p>
<p>Annabeth launched a vial of Greek fire at the turtle from a makeshift slingshot. At first, Hazel thought she had missed and hit the stern, causing the ship to explode, but the shaking she felt was just the roar of the angry turtle monster, due to it now being on fire. Hazel stood, and saw the turtle covered in green flames. The ship shot forward and threw Hazel to the deck again. 
</p>
<p>She hauled herself up and saw that the ship was bouncing over the waves at an incredible speed. Percy was pushing them along, but it didn’t seem like he could for much longer, and they were already starting to slow down a little.
</p>
<p>The turtle was already a hundred yards behind them, its head charred and smoking. It bellowed in frustration and started after them, its paddle feet scooping through the water with such power that it started to gain on them.  
</p>
<p>“A distraction,” Annabeth said. “We’ll never make it unless we get a distraction.” 
</p>
<p>“A distraction,” Hazel repeated. 
</p>
<p>She concentrated and thought: Arion!
</p>
<p>She had no idea whether it would work. But instantly, Hazel spotted something on the horizon- a flash of light and steam. It streaked across the surface of the Adriatic. In a heartbeat, Arion stood on the quarterdeck. 
</p>
<p>Gods of Olympus, Hazel thought. I love this horse. 
</p>
<p>Arion snorted as if to say, ‘Of course you do. You’re not stupid.’
</p>
<p>Hazel climbed on his back. “Piper, I could use that charmspeak of yours.”
</p>
<p>“Once upon a time, I liked turtles,” Piper muttered, accepting a hand up. “Not anymore!” 
</p>
<p>Hazel spurred Arion. He leaped over the side of the boat, hitting the water at full gallop. 
</p>
<p>The turtle was a fast swimmer, but it couldn’t match Arion’s speed. Hazel and Piper zipped around the monster’s head, Hazel slicing with her sword, Piper shouting random commands like, “Dive! Turn left! Look behind you!” 
</p>
<p>The sword did no damage. Each command only worked for a moment, but they were making the turtle very annoyed. Arion whinnied derisively as the turtle snapped at him, only getting a mouthful of horse vapor. 
</p>
<p>Soon the monster had completely forgotten about the Argo II. Hazel kept stabbing at its head. Piper kept yelling commands and using her cornucopia to bounce coconuts and roasted chickens off the turtle’s eyeballs. 
</p>
<p>As soon as the Argo II had passed into the straits, Arion broke off his harassment. They sped after the ship, and a moment later were back on deck. 
</p>
<p>The waves had stopped propelling them forward, and Percy was slumped against the mast, halfway between waking and sleeping. The boat limped forward on sail power and one of their best had exhausted themselves, but their plan had paid off. They were safely harbored in the narrow waters, with a long, rocky island to starboard and the sheer white cliffs of the mainland to port. The turtle stopped at the entrance to the straits and glared at them balefully, but it made no attempt to follow. Its shell was obviously much too wide.
</p>
<p>Hazel dismounted and got a small smile from Annabeth. “Nice work out there.” 
</p>
<p>“Thanks.” 
</p>
<p>Piper slid down next to her. “Annabeth, that was brilliant!” 
</p>
<p>Annabeth smiled gratefully. “Thank you. But it never would have worked without you two-” 
</p>
<p>“And Percy.” Hazel interrupted. Annabeth nodded. 
</p>
<p>“Yes. And Percy. I wish he hadn’t overexerted himself, but… It was probably the only way to get us all here.” 
</p>
<p>A beat of silence passed, appreciative silence, before Jason asked, “So what now?”
</p>
<p>“Kill the turtle!” Coach said. “You even have to ask? We got enough distance. We got ballistae. Lock and load, demigods!” 
</p>
<p>Jason frowned. “Coach, first of all, you made me lose my sword.” 
</p>
<p>“Hey! I didn’t ask for an evac!” 
</p>
<p>“Second, I don't think the ballistae will do any good. That shell id like Nemean Lion skin. Its head isn’t any softer.” 
</p>
<p>“So we chuck one right down its throat,” Coach said, “Like you guys did with that shrimp monster thing in the Atlantic. Light it up from the inside.” 
</p>
<p>Annabeth hummed. “That might work. But then you’ve got a five-million-pound turtle carcass blocking the entrance to the straits.” 
</p>
<p>“If we can’t fly with the oars broken,” Jason continued, “Then how do we get the ship out?” 
</p>
<p>“You wait and fix the oars!” Coach said. “Or just sail the other direction, you big galoot.” 
</p>
<p>Jason furrowed his brow. “What’s a galoot?” 
</p>
<p>“Guys!” Nico called down from the mast. “About sailing the other direction? I don’t think that’s going to work.” 
</p>
<p>He pointed past the prow. 
</p>
<p>A quarter mile ahead of them, the long rocky strip of land curved in and met the cliffs, The channel ended in a narrow V. 
</p>
<p>“We’re not in a strait,” Piper said. “We’re in a dead end.” 
</p>
<p>Hazel got a cold feeling in her fingers and toes. On the port rail, Gale the weasel sat up on her haunches, staring at Hazel expectantly. 
</p>
<p>“This is a trap,” Hazel said.
</p>
<p>The others looked at her.
</p>
<p>“I’m sure we’re fine,” Annabeth said. “Worse that happened, we make repairs. Might take overnight, and I’m going to need help, but I can get the ship flying again.”
</p>
<p>At the mouth of the inlet, the turtle roared. It didn’t appear interested in leaving. 
</p>
<p>“Well…” Piper shrugged. “At least the turtle can’t get us. We’re safe here.” 
</p>
<p>That was something no demigod should ever say. The words had barely left Piper’s mouth when an arrow sank into the mainmast, six inches from her face and only a foot above Percy’s head. 
</p>
<p>----------
</p>
<p>The crew scattered for cover, except for Piper, who stood frozen in place, gaping at the arrow that had almost pierced her nose the hard way.
But no other missiles rained down.
</p>
<p>Annabeth studied the angle of the bolt in the mast and pointed toward the top of the cliffs.
</p>
<p>“Up there,” She said. “Single shooter, it looks like. See him?” 
</p>
<p>The sun was in her eyes, but Hazel spotted a tiny figure standing at the top of the ledge. His bronze armor glinted. 
</p>
<p>“Who the heck is he?” Hedge demanded. “Why is he firing at us?”
</p>
<p>“Guys?” Piper’s voice was thin and watery. “There’s a note.”
</p>
<p>Hazel hadn’t seen it before, but a parchment scroll was tied to the arrow shaft. She wasn’t sure why, but that made her angry. She stormed over and untied it. 
</p>
<p>“Uh, Hazel?” Jason said. “You sure that’s safe?”  
</p>
<p>She read the note out loud. “First line: Stand and deliver.” 
</p>
<p>“What does that mean?” Coach Hedge complained. “We are standing. Well, crouching, anyway. And if that guy is expecting a pizza delivery, forget it!” 
</p>
<p>“There’s more,” Hazel said. “This is a robbery. Send two of your party to the top of the cliff with all of your valuables. No more than two. Leave the magic horse. No flying. No tricks. Just climb.”
</p>
<p>“Climb what?” Piper asked. 
</p>
<p>Nico pointed. “There.” 
</p>
<p>A narrow set of steps was carved into the cliff, leading to the top. The turtle, the dead end channel, the cliff… Hazel got the feeling this was not the first time the letter writer had ambushed a ship here. 
</p>
<p>She cleared her throat and kept reading aloud: “I do mean all your valuables. Otherwise my turtle and I will destroy you. You have five minutes.”
</p>
<p>“Use the catapults!” Cried the coach. 
</p>
<p>“P.S.,” Hazel read, “Don’t even think about using your catapults.” 
</p>
<p>“Curse it!” Said the coach. “This guy is good.” 
</p>
<p>“Is the note signed?” Nico asked.
</p>
<p>Hazel shook her head. She’d heard a story back at Camp Jupiter, something about a robber who worked with a giant turtle; but as usual, as soon as she needed the information, it sat annoying in the back of her memory, just out of reach. 
</p>
<p>The weasel Gale watched her, waiting to see what she would do. 
</p>
<p>The test hasn’t happened yet, Hazel thought.
</p>
<p>Distracting the turtle hadn’t been enough. Hazel hadn’t proven anything about how she could manipulate the Mist… Mostly because she couldn’t manipulate the Mist.
</p>
<p>Annabeth studied the cliff top and muttered under her breath. “That’s not a good trajectory. Even if I could arm the catapults before that guy pincushioned us with arrows, I don’t think I could make the shot. That’s hundreds of feet, almost straight up.” 
</p>
<p>“Yeah,” Jason grumbled. “He’s got a huge advantage, being above us like that. If I were to try and fly up, he’d see immediately, But I don’t even think I’d be able to make it up that high with no rests.” 
</p>
<p>“And, um…” Piper nudged the arrow that was stuck in the mast. “I have a feeling he’s a good shot. I don’t think he meant to hit me. But if he did…” 
</p>
<p>She didn’t need to elaborate. Whoever that robber was, he could hit a target from hundreds of feet away. He could shoot them all before they could react. 
</p>
<p>“I’ll go,” Hazel said. 
</p>
<p>She hated the idea, but she was Hecate set this up as some sort of twisted challenge. This was Hazel’s test- her turn to save the ship. As if she needed confirmation, Gale scampered along the railing and jumped on her shoulder, ready to hitch a ride.
</p>
<p>The others stared at her.
</p>
<p>Piper gripped her cornucopia. “Hazel-” 
</p>
<p>“No, listen,” She said, “This robber wants valuables. I can go up there, summon gold, jewels, whatever he wants.” 
</p>
<p>Annabeth raised an eyebrow. “If we pay him off, you think he’ll actually let us go?”
</p>
<p>“We don’t have much of a choice,” Nico said. “Between that guy and the turtle…” 
</p>
<p>Jason raised his hand. The others fell silent. 
</p>
<p>“I’ll go too,” He said. “The letter says two people. I’ll take Hazel up there and watch her back. Besides, I don’t like the look of those steps. If Hazel falls… Well, I can use the winds to keep us both from coming down the hard way.” 
</p>
<p>Arion whinnied in protest, as if to say, ‘You’re going without me? You’re kidding, right?’
</p>
<p>“I have to, Arion,” Hazel said. “Jason… Yes. I think you’re right. It’s the best plan.” 
</p>
<p>“Only wish I had my sword.” Jason glared at the coach. “It’s back there at the bottom of the sea, and Percy’s passed out and Frank’s not here, so it might as well be lost for good.” 
</p>
<p>The name Frank passed over them like a cloud. The mood on deck got even darker. It made her more determined to follow through with this, test or not. 
</p>
<p>Hazel stretched out her arm. She didn’t think about it. She just concentrated on the water and called for Imperial gold. 
</p>
<p>A stupid idea. The sword was much too far away, probably hundreds of feet underwater. But she felt a quick tug in her fingers, like a bite on a fishing line, and Jason’s blade flew out of the water and into her hand. 
</p>
<p>“Here,” She said, handing it over. 
</p>
<p>Jason’s eyes widened. “How… That was like half a mile!” 
</p>
<p>“I’ve been practicing,” She said, though it wasn’t true. 
</p>
<p>She hoped she hadn’t accidentally cursed Jason’s sword by summoning it, the way she cursed jewels and precious metals.
</p>
<p>Somehow, though, she thought, weapons were different. After all, she’d raised a bunch of Imperial gold equipment from glacier bay and distributed it to the Fifth Cohort. That had worked out okay.
</p>
<p>She decided not to worry about it. She felt so angry at Hecate and so tired of being manipulated by the gods and the Fates that she wasn’t going to let any trifling problems stand in her way. “Now, if there are no other objections, we have a robber to meet.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0017"><h2>17. Hazel</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hazel liked the great outdoors- but climbing a two-hundred-foot cliff stairway without rails, with a bad-tempered weasel on her shoulder? Not so much. Especially when she could have ridden Arion to the top in a matter of seconds.</p><p>Jason walked behind her so he could catch her if she fell. Hazel appreciated that, but it didn’t make the sheer drop any less scary. Every time she looked down, she was reminded of the glaciers in Alaska and their loose ice and falling rocks. 
	</p>
<p>She glanced to her right, which was a mistake. Her foot almost slipped, sending a spray of gravel over the edge. Gale squeaked in alarm. 
	</p>
<p>“You alright?” Jason asked. 
	</p>
<p>“Yes.” Hazel heart disagreed, jackhammering at her ribs. “Fine.” 
	</p>
<p>She had no room to turn and look at him. She just had to trust he wouldn’t let her plummet to her death. Since he could fly, he was the only logical backup. Still, she wished it was Annabeth at her back, or Nico, or Piper, or Percy. Or even… Well, okay, maybe not Coach Hedge. But still, Hazel couldn’t get a read on Jason Grace.
	</p>
<p>Ever since she’d arrived at Camp Jupiter, she’d heard stories about him. The campers spoke with reverence about the son of Jupiter who’d risen from the lowly ranks of the Fifth Cohort to become praetor, led them to victory in the battle of Mount Tam, then disappeared. Even now, after all the events of the past couple weeks, Jason seemed more like a legend than a person. She had a hard time warming up to him, with those icy blue eyes and that careful reserve, like he was calculating every word before he said it. Also, she couldn’t forget how he had been ready to write off her brother, Nico, when they’d learned he was a captive in Rome. 
	</p>
<p>Jason had thought Nico was bait for a trap. He had been right. And maybe, now that Nico was safe, Hazel could see why Jason’s caution was a good idea. Still, she didn’t quite know what to think of the guy. What if they got themselves in trouble at the top of this cliff, and Jason decided that saving Hazel wasn’t in the best interest of the quest?
	</p>
<p>She glanced up. She couldn’t see the thief from here, but she sensed him waiting. Hazel was confident she could produce enough gems and gold to impress even the greediest robbers. She wondered if the treasures she summoned would still bring bad luck. She’d never been sure whether that curse had been broken when she had died the first time. This seemed like a good opportunity to find out. Anybody who robbed innocent demigods with a giant turtle deserved a few nasty curses. 
	</p>
<p>Gale the weasel jumped off her shoulder and scampered ahead. She glanced back and barked eagerly. 
	</p>
<p>“Going as fast as I can,” Hazel muttered.
	</p>
<p>She couldn’t shake the feeling that the weasel was anxious to watch her fail. 
	</p>
<p>“This, uh, controlling the Mist,” Jason said. “Have you had any luck?” 
	</p>
<p>“No,” Hazel admitted. 
	</p>
<p>Hazel didn’t like to think about her failures- the seagull she couldn’t turn into a dragon, Coach Hedge’s baseball bat stubbornly refusing to turn into a hot dog. She just couldn’t make herself believe any of it was possible.
	</p>
<p>“You’ll get it,” Jason said.
	</p>
<p>His tone surprised her. It wasn’t a throwaway comment just to be nice. He sounded truly convinced. She kept climbing, but she imagined him watching her with those piercing blue eyes, his jaw set with confidence. 
	</p>
<p>“How can you be sure?” She asked. 
	</p>
<p>“Just am. I’ve got a good instinct for what people can do- demigods, anyway. Hecate wouldn’t have picked you if she didn’t believe you had the power.” 
	</p>
<p>Maybe that should have made Hazel feel better. It didn’t. 
	</p>
<p>She had a good instinct for people too. She understood what motivated her friends- even her brother, Nico, who wasn’t easy to read. 
	</p>
<p>But Jason? She didn’t have a clue. Everybody said he was a natural leader. She believed it. Here he was, making her feel like a valued member of the team, telling her she was capable of anything. But what was Jason capable of? 
	</p>
<p>She couldn’t really talk to anyone about her doubts. Percy was in awe of the guy. Annabeth had this judging respect for him. And Piper, of course, was head-over-heels for him. Even Nico seemed to follow his lead without question. 
	</p>
<p>But Hazel couldn’t forget that Jason had been Juno’s first move in the war against the giants. The Queen of Olympus had dropped Jason into Camp Half-Blood, which had started this entire chain of events to stop Gaea. Why Jason first? Something told Hazel that he was the linchpin. Jason would be the final play too. 
	</p>
<p>To storm or fire the world must fall. That’s what the prophecy said. As much as Hazel feared fire, mostly on Frank’s behalf, she feared storms more. Jason Grace could cause some pretty huge storms. 
	</p>
<p>She glanced up and saw the rim of the cliff only a few yards above her. 
	</p>
<p>She reached the top, breathless and sweaty. A long sloping valley marched inland, dotted with scraggly olive trees and limestone boulders. There were no signs of civilization. 
	</p>
<p>Hazel’s legs trembled from the climb. Gale seemed anxious to explore. The weasel barked and farted and scampered into the nearest bushes. Far below, the Argo II looked like a toy boat in the channel. Hazel didn’t understand how anyone could shoot an arrow accurately from this high up, accounting for the wind and the glare of the sun off the water. At the mouth of the inlet, the massive shape of a turtle’s shell glinted like a burnished coin.  
	</p>
<p>Jason joined her at the top, looking no worse for the climb. 
	</p>
<p>He started to say, “Where-” 
	</p>
<p>“Here!” Said a voice. 
	</p>
<p>Hazel flinched. Only ten feet away, a man had appeared, a bow and quiver over his shoulder and two old-fashioned flintlock dueling pistols in his hands. He wore high leather boots, leather breeches, and a pirate-style shirt. His curly black hair looked like a little kid’s do and his sparkly green eyes were friendly enough, byt a red bandana covered the lower half of his face. 
	</p>
<p>“Welcome!” The bandit cried, pointing his guns at them. “Your money or your life!” 
</p>
<p>----------
	</p>
<p>Hazel was certain that he hadn’t been there a second ago. He’d simply materialized, as if he’d stepped out from behind an invisible curtain. 
	</p>
<p>“Who are you?” Hazel asked.
	</p>
<p>The bandit laughed. “Sciron, of course!”
	</p>
<p>“Chiron?” Jason asked. “Liked the centaur?” 
	</p>
<p>The bandit rolled his eyes, looking like he’d been asked that question a million times. “Sky-ron, my friend. Son of Poseidon! Thief extraordinaire! All-around awesome guy! But that’s not important. I’m not seeing any valuables!” He cried, as if this were excellent news. “I guess this means you want to die?” 
	</p>
<p>“Wait,” Hazel said. “We’ve got valuables. But if we give them up, how can we be sure you’ll let us go?” 
	</p>
<p>“Oh, they always ask that,” Sciron said. “I promise you, on the River Styx, that as soon as you surrender what I want, I will not shoot you. I will send you right back down that cliff.” 
	</p>
<p>Hazel gave Jason a weary look. River Styx or now, the way Sciron phrased his promise didn’t reassure her.
	</p>
<p>“What if we fought you?” Jason asked. “You can’t attack us and hold our ship hostage at the same-” 
	</p>
<p>BANG! BANG!
	</p>
<p>It happened so fast, Hazel’s brain needed a moment to catch up.
	</p>
<p>Smoke curled from the side of Jason’s head. Just above his left ear, a groove cut through his hair like a racing stripe. One of Sciron’s flintlocks was still pointed at his face. The other flintlock was pointed down, over the side of the cliff, as if the second shot had been fired at the Argo II. 
	</p>
<p>Hazel choked from delayed shock. “What did you do?” 
	</p>
<p>“Oh, don’t worry!” Sciron laughed. “If you could see that far- which you can’t- you’d see a whole in the deck between the shoes of the scrawny young man, the one in all black.” 
	</p>
<p>“Nico!” 
	</p>
<p>Sciron shrugged. “If you say so. That was just a demonstration. I’m afraid it could have been much more serious.” 
	</p>
<p>He spun his flintlocks. The hammers reset, and Hazel had a feeling the guns had magically reloaded. 
	</p>
<p>Sciron waggled his eyebrows at jason. “So! To answer your question- yes, I can attack you and hold your ship hostage at the same time. Celestial bronze ammunition, Quite deadly to demigods. You two would die first- bang, bang. Then I could take my time picking off your friends on that ship. Target practice is so much more fun with live targets running around screaming!” 
	</p>
<p>Jason touched the new furrow that the bullet had plowed through his hair. For once, he didn’t look very confident. 
	</p>
<p>Hazel’s ankles wobbled. Frank was the best shot she knew with a bow, but this bandit Sciron was inhumanly good.
	</p>
<p>“You’re a son of Poseidon?” She managed. “I would have guessed Apollo, the way you shoot.” 
	</p>
<p>The smile lines deepened around his eyes. “Why, thank you! It’s just from practice, though. The giant turtle- that’s due to my parentage. You can’t go around taming giant turtles without being a son of Poseidon! I could overwhelm your ship with a tidal wave, of course, but it’s terribly difficult work. Not nearly as fun as ambushing and shooting people.”
	</p>
<p>Hazel tried to collect her thought, stall for time, but it was difficult while staring down the smoking barrels of those flintlocks. “Uh… what’s the bandana for?”
	</p>
<p>“So no one recognises me!” Sciron said. 
	</p>
<p>“But you introduced yourself,” Jason said. “You’re Sciron.” 
	</p>
<p>The bandit’s eyes widened. “How did you- Oh. Yes, I supposed I did.” He lowered one flintlock and scratched the side of his head with the other. “Terribly sloppy of me. Sorry. I’m afraid I’m a little rusty. Back from the dead, and all that. Let me try again.”
	</p>
<p>He leveled his pistols. “Stand and deliver! I am an anonymous bandit, and you do not need to know my name!” 
	</p>
<p>An anonymous bandit. Something clicked in Hazel’s memory. “Theseus. He killed you once.”
	</p>
<p>Sciron’s shoulders slumped. “Now, why did you have to mention him? We were getting along so well!” 
	</p>
<p>Jason frowned. “Hazel, you know this guy’s story?”
	</p>
<p>She nodded, although the details were murky. “Theseus met him on the road to Athens. Sciron would kill his victims by, um…” 
	</p>
<p>Something about the turtle. Hazel couldn’t remember. 
	</p>
<p>“Theseus was such a cheater!” Sciron complained. “I don’t want to talk about him. I’m back from the dead now. Gaea promised me I could stay on the coastline and rob all the demigods I wanted, and that’s what I’m going to do! Now… Where were we?” 
	</p>
<p>“You were about to let us go,” Hazel ventured.
	</p>
<p>“Hmmm…” Sciron said. “No, I’m pretty sure that wasn’t it. Ah, right! Money or your life. Where are your valuables? Now valuables? Then I’ll have to-” 
	</p>
<p>“Wait,” Hazel said. “I have our valuables. At least, I can get them.”
	</p>
<p>Sciron pointed a flintlock at Jason’s head. “Well, then, my dear, hop to it, or my next shot will cut off more than your friend’s hair!” 
</p>
<p>----------
	</p>
<p>Hazel hardly needed to concentrate. She was so anxious, the ground rumbled beneath her and immediately yielded a bumper crop- precious metals popping to the surface as though the dirt was anxious to expel them.
	</p>
<p>She found herself surrounded by a knee-high mound of treasure- Roman denarii, silver drachmas, ancient gold jewelry, glittering diamonds and topaz and rubies- enough to fill several lawn bags. 
	</p>
<p>Sciron laughed with delight. “How in the world did you do that?” 
	</p>
<p>Hazel didn’t answer. She thought about all the coins that had appeared at the crossroads with Hecate. Here were even more- centuries’ worth of hidden wealth from every empire that had ever claimed this land- Greek, Roman, Byzantine, and so many others. Those empires were gone, leaving only a barren coastline for Sciron the bandit. 
	</p>
<p>That thought made her feel small and powerless. 
	</p>
<p>“Just take the treasure,” she said. “Let us go.” 
	</p>
<p>Sciron chuckled. “Oh, but I did say all your valuables. I understand you’re holding something very special on that ship… A certain ivory-and-gold statue about, say, forty feet tall?” 
	</p>
<p>The sweat started to dry on Hazel’s neck, sending a shiver down her back. She couldn’t let Sciron take the Athena Parthenos. They had sacrificed too much to get it. She had sacrificed too much.
	</p>
<p>Jason stepped forward. Despite the gun pointed at his face, his eyes were as hard as sapphires. “The statue isn’t negotiable.” 
	</p>
<p>“You’re right, it’s not!” Sciron agreed. “I must have it!” 
	</p>
<p>“Gaea told you about it,” Hazel guessed. “She ordered you to take it.” 
	</p>
<p>Sciron shrugged. “Maybe. But she told me I could keep it for myself. HArd to pass up that offer! I don’t intend to die again, my friends. I intend to live a long life as a very wealthy man!” 
	</p>
<p>“The statue won’t do you any good,” Hazel said. “Not if Gaea destroys the world.” 
	</p>
<p>The muzzles of Sciron’s pistol’s wavered. “Pardon?”
	</p>
<p>“Gaea is using you,” Hazel said. “If you take that statue, we won’t be able to defeat her. She’s planning on wiping all mortals and demigods off the face of the earth, letting her giants and monsters take over. So where will you spend your gold, Sciron? Assuming Gaea even lets you live.” 
	</p>
<p>Hazel let that sink in. She figured Sciron would have no trouble believing in double-crosses, being a bandit and all.
	</p>
<p>He was silent for a count of ten.
	</p>
<p>Finally his smile lines returned. 
	</p>
<p>“Alright!” He said. “I’m not unreasonable. Keep the statue.” 
	</p>
<p>Jason blinked. “We can go?” 
	</p>
<p>“Just one more thing,” Sciron said. “I always demand a show of respect. Before I let my victims leave, I insist that they wash my feet.” 
	</p>
<p>Hazel wasn’t sure she’d heard him right. Then Sciron kicked off his leather boots, one after the other. His bare feet were the most disgusting things Hazel had ever seen… And she had seen some very disgusting things.
</p>
<p>They were puffy, wrinkled, and white as dough, as if they’d been soaking in formaldehyde for a few centuries. Tufts of brown hair sprouted from each misshapen toe. His jagged toenails were green and yellow, like a tortoise’s shell.
</p>
<p>Then the smell hit her. Hazel didn’t know if her father’s Underworld palace had a cafeteria for zombies, but if it did, she imagined that cafeteria would smell like Sciron’s feet. 
</p>
<p>“So!” Sciron wriggled his disgusting toes. “Who wants the left, and who wants the right?”
</p>
<p>Jason’s face was almost as white as those feet. “You’ve… Got to be kidding.” 
</p>
<p>“Not at all!” Sciron said. “Wash my feet, and we’re done. I’ll send you back down the cliff. I promise on the River Styx.” 
</p>
<p>He made that promise so easily, alarm bells rang in Hazel’s mind. Feet. Send you back down the cliff. Tortoise shell.
</p>
<p>The story came back to her, all the missing pieces fitting into place. She remembered how Sciron killed his victims. 
</p>
<p>“Could we have a minute?” Hazel asked the bandit.
</p>
<p>Sciron’s eyes narrowed. “What for?” 
</p>
<p>“Well, it’s a big decision,” she said. “Left foot, right foot. We need to discuss.” 
</p>
<p>She could tell he was smiling under the mask.
</p>
<p>“Of course,” he said. “I’m so generous, you can have two minutes.” 
</p>
<p>Hazel climbed out of her pile of treasure. She led Jason as far away as she dared- about fifty feet down the cliff, which she hoped was out of earshot. 
</p>
<p>“Sciron kicks his victims off the cliff,” she whispered.
</p>
<p>Jason scowled. “What?
</p>
<p>“When you kneel down to wash his feet,” Hazel said. “That’s how he kills you. When you’re off balance, woozy from the smell of his feet, he’ll kick you over the edge. You’ll fall right into the mouth of his giant turtle.”
</p>
<p>Jason took a moment to digest that, so to speak. He glanced over the cliff, where the turtle's massive shell glinted just under the water. 
</p>
<p>“So we have to fight,” Jason said. 
</p>
<p>“Sciron’s too fast,” Hazel said. “He’ll kill us both.” 
</p>
<p>“Then I’ll be ready to fly. When he kicks me over, I’ll float halfway down the cliff. Then when he kicks you, I’ll catch you.” 
</p>
<p>Hazel shook her head. “If he kicks you hard and fast enough, you’ll be too dazed to fly.. And there’s no guarantee that he’ll kick you first. And even if he does, and even if you can, Sciron’s got the eyes of a marksman. He’ll watch you fall. If you hover, he’ll just shoot you out of the air.”
</p>
<p>“Then…” Jason clenched his sword hilt. “I hope you have another idea?”
</p>
<p>A few feet away, Gale the weasel appeared from the bushes. She gnashed her teeth and peered at Hazel as if to say, Well? Do you?
</p>
<p>Hazel calmed her nerves, trying to avoid pulling more gold from the ground. She remembered the dream she’d had of her father Pluto’s voice: The dead see what they believe they will see. So do the living. That is the secret.
</p>
<p>She understood what she had to do. She hated the idea worse than she hated the farting weasel, worse than she hated Sciron’s feet.
</p>
<p>“Unfortunately, yes,” Hazel said. “We have to let Sciron win.”
</p>
<p>“What?” Jason demanded.
</p>
<p>Hazel told him the plan.
</p>
<p>----------
	</p>
<p>“Finally!” Sciron cried. “That was much longer than two minutes!” 
 </p>
<p>“Sorry,” Jason said. “It was a big decision… Which foot.” 
</p>
<p>Hazel tried to clear her mind and imagine the scene through  Sciron’s eyes- what he desired, what he expected.
</p>
<p>That was the key to using the Mist. She couldn’t force someone to see the world her way. She couldn’t make Sciron’s reality appear less believable. But if she showed him what he wanted to see… Well, she was a child of Pluto. She’d spent decades with the dead, listening to them year for past lives that were only half-remembered, distorted by nostalgia.
</p>
<p>The dead saw what they believed they would see. So did the living.

</p>
<p>Pluto was the god of the Underworld, the god of wealth. Maybe those two spheres of influence were more connected than Hazel had realized. There wasn’t much difference between longing and greed.  
</p>
<p>If she could summon gold and diamonds, why not summon another kind of treasure- a vision of the world people wanted to see?
</p>
<p>Of course, she could be wrong, in which case she and Jason were about to be turtle food. 
</p>
<p>She rested her hand on her jacket pocket, where Frank’s magical firewood seemed heavier than usual. She wasn’t just carrying his lifeline now. She was carrying the lives of the entire crew. 
</p>
<p>Jason stepped forward, his hands open in surrender. “I’ll go first, Sciron. I’ll wash your left foot.” 
</p>
<p>“Excellent choice!” Sciron wriggled his harry, corpse-like toes. “I may have stepped on something with that foot. It felt a little squishy inside my boot. But I’m sure you’ll clean it properly.” 
</p>
<p>Jason’s ears reddened. From the tension in his neck, Hazel could tell that he was tempted to drop the charade and attack- one quick slash with his imperial gold blade. But Hazel knew if he tried, he would fail.
</p>
<p>“Sciron,” she broke in, “Do you have water? Soap? How are we supposed to wash-” 
</p>
<p>“Like this!” Sciron spun his left flintlock. Suddenly, it became a squirt bottle with a rag. He tossed it to Jason. 
</p>
<p>Jason squinted at the label. “You want me to wash your feet with glass cleaner?” 
</p>
<p>“Of course not!” Sciron knit his eyebrows. “It says multi-surface cleanser. My feet definitely qualify as multi-surface. Besides, it’s antibacterial. I need that. Believe me, water won’t do the trick on these babies.” 
</p>
<p>Sciron wiggled his toes, and more zombie cafe odor wafted across the cliffs.
</p>
<p>Jason gagged. “Oh, gods, no…”
</p>
<p>Sciron shrugged. “You can always choose what’s in my other hand.” He hefted his right flintlock. 
</p>
<p>“He’ll do it,” Hazel said. 
</p>
<p>Jason glared at her, but Hazel won the staring contest.
</p>
<p>“Fine,” he muttered.
</p>
<p>“Excellent! Now…” Sciron hopped to the nearest chunk of limestone that was the right size for a footstool. He faced the water and planted his foot, so he looked like some explorer who’d just claimed a new country. “I’ll watch the horizon while you scrub my bunions. It’ll be much more enjoyable.”
</p>
<p>“Yeah,” Jason said. “I bet.” 
</p>
<p>Jason knelt in front of the bandit, at the edge of the cliff, where he was an easy target. One kick, and he’d topple over. 
</p>
<p>Hazel concentrated. She imagined she as Sciron, the lord of bandits. She was looking down at a pathetic blond-haired kid who was no threat at all- just another defeated demigod about to become his victim. 
</p>
<p>In her mind, she saw what would happen. She summoned the Mist, calling it from the depths of the earth the way she did with gold or silver or rubies. 
Jason squirted the cleaning fluid. His eyes watered. He wiped Sciron’s big toe with his rag and turned aside to gag. Hazel could barely watch. When the kick happened, she almost missed it. 
</p>
<p>Sciron slammed his foot into Jason’s chest. Jason tumbled backwards over the edge, arms flailing, screaming as he fell. When he was about to hit the water, the turtle rose up and swallowed him in one bit, then sank below the surface. 
</p>
<p>Alarm bells sounded on the Argo II. Hazel’s friends scrambled on deck, manning the catapults. Hazel heard Piper wailing all the way from the ship. 
</p>
<p>It was so disturbing, Hazel almost lost her focus. She forced her mind to split into two parts- one intensely focused on her task, one playing the role Sciron needed to see.
</p>
<p>She screamed in outrage. “What did you do?”
</p>
<p>“Oh, dear…” Sciron sounded sad, but Hazel got the impression he was hiding a grin under his bandana. “That was an accident, I assure you.” 
</p>
<p>“My friends will kill you now!” 
</p>
<p>“They can try,” Sciron said. “But in the meantime, I think you have to wash my other foot! Believe me, my dear. My turtle is full now. He doesn’t want you too. You’ll be quite safe, unless you refuse.” 
</p>
<p>He levered the flintlock pistol at her head.
</p>
<p>She hesitated, letting him see her anguish. She couldn’t agree too easily, or he wouldn’t think she was beaten.
</p>
<p>“Don’t kick me,” she said, half-sobbing.
</p>
<p>His eyes twinkled. This was exactly what he expected. She was broken and helpless. Sciron, the son of Poseidon, had won again.
</p>
<p>Hazel could hardly believe this guy had the same father as Percy Jackson. Then she remembered that Poseidon had a changeable personality, like the sea. Percy was a child of Poseidon’s better nature- powerful, but gentle and helpful, the kind of sea that sped ships safely to distant lands. Sciron was a child of Poseidon’s other side- the kind of sea that battered relentlessly at the coastline until it crumbled away, or carried the innocents from the shore and let them down, or smashed ships and killed entire crews without mercy. 
</p>
<p>She snatched up the spray bottle Jason had dropped. 
</p>
<p>“Sciron,” she growled, “Your feet are the least disgusting thing about you.” 
</p>
<p>His green eyes hardened. “Just clean.”
</p>
<p>She knelt, trying to ignore the smell. She shuffled to one side, forcing Sciron to adjust his stance, but she imagined that the sea was still at her back. She held that vision in her mind as she shuffled sideways again.
</p>
<p>“Just get on with it!” Sciron said.
</p>
<p>Hazel suppressed a smile. She’d managed to turn Sciron one hundred and eighty degrees, but he still saw the water in front of him, the rolling countryside at his back. 
</p>
<p>She started to clean. 
</p>
<p>Hazel had done plenty of ugly work before. She’d cleaned the unicorn stables at Camp Jupiter (believe her, they did not poop glitter and rainbows). She’d filled and dug latrines for the legion.
</p>
<p>This is nothing, she told herself. But it was hard not to retch when she looked at Sciron’s toes.
</p>
<p>When the kick came, she flew backward, but she didn’t go far. She landed on her butt in the grass a few yards away.
</p>
<p>Sciron stared at her. “But…”
</p>
<p>Suddenly the world shifted, The illusion melted, leaving Sciron totally confused. The sea was at his back. He’s only succeeded in kicking Hazel away from the ledge. 
</p>
<p>He lowered his flintlock. “How-”
</p>
<p>“Stand and deliver,” Hazel told him.
</p>
<p>Jason swooped out of the sky, right over her head, and body-slammed the bandit over the cliff. 
</p>
<p>Sciron screamed as he fell, firing his flintlock wildly, but for once hitting nothing. Hazel got to her feet. She reached the cliff’s edge in time to see the turtle lunge and snap Sciron out of the air.
</p>
<p>Jason grinned. “Hazel, that was amazing. Seriously… Hazel? Hey, Hazel?”
</p>
<p>Hazel collapsed to her knees, suddenly dizzy.
</p>
<p>Distantly, she could hear her friends cheering from the ship below. Jason stood over her, but he was moving in slow motion, his outline blurry, his voice nothing but static. 
</p>
<p>Frost crept across the rocks and grass around her. The mounds of riches she’d summoned sank back into the earth. The Mist swirled.
</p>
<p>What have I done? She thought in a panic. Something went wrong. 
</p>
<p>“No, Hazel,” said a deep voice behind her. “You have done well.” 
</p>
<p>She hardly dared to breathe. She’d only heard that voice once before, but she had replayed it in her mind thousands of times. 
</p>
<p>She turned and found herself looking up at her father.
</p>
<p>He was dressed in Roman style- his dark hair close-cropped, his pale, angular face clean-shaven. His tunic and toga were of black wool, embroidered with threads of gold. The faces of tormented souls shifted in the fabric. The edge of his toga was lined with the crimson of a senator or a praetor, but the stripe rippled like a river of blood. On Pluto’s ring finger was a massive opal, like a chunk of polished frozen Mist. 
</p>
<p>His wedding ring, Hazel thought. But Pluto had never married Hazel’s mother. Gods did not marry mortals. That ring would signify his marriage to Persephone.
</p>
<p>The thought made Hazel so angry, she shook off her dizziness and stood.
</p>
<p>“What do you want?” She demanded. 
</p>
<p>She hoped her tone would hurt him- jab him for all the pain he’d caused her. But a faint smile played across his mouth.
</p>
<p>“My daughter,” he said. “I am impressed. You have grown strong.”
</p>
<p>No thanks to you, she wanted to say She didn’t want to take any pleasure in his compliment, but her eyes still prickled. 
</p>
<p>“I thought you major gods were incapacitated,” she managed. “Your Greek and Roman personalities fighting against one another.”
</p>
<p>“We are,” Pluto agreed. “But you invoked me so strongly that you allowed me to appear… If only for a moment.”
</p>
<p>“I didn’t invoke you.” 
</p>
<p>But even as she said it, she knew it wasn’t true. For the first time, willingly, she’d embraced her lineage as a child of Pluto. She’d tried to understand her father’s powers and use them to the fullest. 
</p>
<p>“When you come to my house in Epirus,” Pluto said, :You must be prepared. The dead will not welcome you. And the sorceress Pasiphae-”
</p>
<p>“Pacify?” Hazel asked. Then she realised that must be the woman’s name.
</p>
<p>“She will not be filled as easily as Sciron.” Pluto’s eyes glittered like volcanic stone. “You succeeded in your first test, but Pasiphae intends to rebuild her domain, which will endanger all demigods. Unless you stop her at the House of Hades…”
</p>
<p>His form flickered. For a moment he was beared, in Greek robes with a golden laurel wreath in his hair. Around his feet, skeletal hands broke through the earth.
</p>
<p>The god gritted his teeth and scowled.
</p>
<p>His Roman form stabilized. The skeletal hands dissolved back into the earth.
</p>
<p>“We do not have much time.” HE looked like a man who’d just been violently ill. “Know that the Doors of Death are at the lowest level of the Necromanteion. You must make Pasiphae see what she wants to see. You are right. That is the secret to all magic. But it will not be easy when you are in her maze.”
</p>
<p>“What do you mean? What maze?”
</p>
<p>“You will understand,” he promised. “And, Hazel Levesque… You will not believe me, but I am proud of your strength. Sometimes… Sometimes the only way I can care for my children is from a distance.” 
</p>
<p>Hazel bit back an insult. Pluto was just another deadbeat godly dad making weak excuses. But hre heart pounded as she replayed his words: I am proud of your strength. 
</p>
<p>“Go to your friends,” Pluto said. “They will be worried. The journey to Epirus still holds many perils.” 
</p>
<p>“Wait,” Hazel said.
</p>
<p>Pluto raised an eyebrow. 
</p>
<p>“When I met Thanatos,” she said, “You know… Death… He told me I wasn’t on your list of rogue spirits to capture. He said maybe that’s why you’re keeping your distance. If you acknowledged me, you’d have to take me back to the Underworld.”
</p>
<p>Pluto waited. “What is your question?”
</p>
<p>“You're here. Why don’t you take me to the Underworld? Return me to the dead?”
</p>
<p>Pluto’s form started to fade. He smiled, but Hazel couldn’t tell if it was sad or pleased. “Perhaps that is not what I want to see, Hazel. Perhaps I was never here.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0018"><h2>18. Frank</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Frank was relieved when the demon grandmothers closed in for the kill.</p><p>Sure, he was terrified. He didn’t like the odds of three against several dozen. But at least he understood fighting. Wandering through the darkness, waiting to be attacked- that had been driving him crazy. 
	</p>
<p>Besides, they had a Titan on their side. 
	</p>
<p>“Back off.” Frank readied his stance. Since getting some food in him at the shrine, he had been feeling better, and had managed a few full body transformations, and his partial ones lasted much longer than his lion’s claw had. The demon only sneered at Frank, unimpressed.
	</p>
<p>‘We are the arai,’ said the weird voice-over, like the entire forest was speaking. ‘You cannot destroy us.’
	</p>
<p>Leo pressed against his shoulder. “Don’t touch them,” he warned. 
	</p>
<p>“Why?” Frank asked. 
	</p>
<p>“I dunno. Just… A bad feeling.” 
	</p>
<p>“Bob doesn’t like bad feelings,” Bob decided. The skeleton kitten Small Bob disappeared inside his coveralls. Smart cat.
	</p>
<p>The Titan swept his broom in a wide arc, forcing the spirits back, but they came in again like the tide.
	</p>
<p>‘We serve the bitter and the defeated,’ said the arai. ‘We serve the slain who prayed for vengeance with their final breath. We have many curses to share with you.’
	</p>
<p>The firewater in Frank’s stomach started crawling up his throat. He wished Tartarus had better beverage options, or maybe a tree that dispensed antacid fruit. 
	</p>
<p>“I appreciate the offer,” Leo said. “But my mom told me not to accept curses from strangers.” 
	</p>
<p>The nearest demon lunged at Leo. Her claws extended like bony switchblades. Frank cut her in half with a bear claw before she reached Leo, but as soon as she vaporised, his head began to throb. Not just like a normal headache, either. It felt like he had been dropped from a skyscraper onto his skull and the pieces of bone were coming apart. He reached up to the back of his head, and his fingers came away wet and red. 
	</p>
<p>“Frank, you’re bleeding-” Leo said, which was kind of obvious to him at that point. But Leo instead pointed at his nose. Frank reached up, and winced as he touched his nose. It was bent at an odd angle, and tender to touch, and his breath made a whistling sound when he breathed. It was like he had been hit in the face with a baseball.
	</p>
<p>Or a shield… 
	</p>
<p>Queasiness almost knocked him over. Vengeance. A curse from the slain.
	</p>
<p>He remembered his encounter with the giant Alcyoneus in Alaska- a giant who could only be killed if he was taken from his home. He had never thought about it at the time, but as they sled across Alaska into Canada, how many injuries had the ground inflicted on his head? How many times had Frank slammed his shield into his nose? 
	</p>
<p>“Alcyoneus,” Frank said. “These are the injuries I…”
	</p>
<p>The spirits bared their fangs. More arai leaped from the black trees, flapping their leathery wings.
	</p>
<p>‘Yes,’ they agreed. ‘Feel the pain you inflicted on Alcyoneus. So many curses have been leveled at you, son of Mars. Which will you die from? Choose, or we will rip you apart!’
	</p>
<p>Somehow, Frank stayed on his feet. The blood stopped spreading, but his head was still pulsing violently, and his breathing felt stifled. His arms were heavy and weak.
</p>
<p>“I don’t understand…” he muttered.
</p>
<p>Bob’s voice seemed to echo from the end of a long tunnel: “If you kill one, it gives you a curse.”
</p>
<p>“But if we don’t kill them…” Frank said.
</p>
<p>“They’ll kill us anyway,” Leo guessed. 
</p>
<p>‘Choose!’ The arai cried. ‘Will you be crushed like the Cyclops? Or strangled like the poor basilisks you slaughtered in Northern California? You have spread so </p>
<p>much death and suffering, godlings. Let us repay you!’ 
</p>
<p>The winged hags pressed in, their breath sour, their eyes burning with hatred. They looked like Furies, but Frank decided these things were even worse. At least </p>
<p>the three Furies were under the control of Pluto. These things were wild, and they just kept multiplying.
</p>
<p>If they really embodied the dying curses of every enemy Frank had ever destroyed… Then Frank was in serious trouble. In just the past few months, he had killed more monsters than he had in his last 16 years alive. 
</p>
<p>Another demon lunged at Leo. Frank was too slow to stop her. Leo instinctively dodged. He blasted the demon with flames, and she broke into dust.
</p>
<p>It wasn’t like Leo had a choice. Frank would have attacked too. But instantly Leo’s flame went out and he yelped in alarm. Smoke started to roll off his skin, and boils like severe burns popped up on his arms. 
</p>
<p>“I’m on fire!” He yelled. He patted himself down desperately, but there were no actual flames. 
</p>
<p>Frank ran to his side as the arai cackled. 
</p>
<p>‘The skolopendra cursed you when you lit him on fire. You did not see the pain you inflicted on him. Now you will feel it burning under your skin, unable to be put out like the Greek fire you used.’
</p>
<p>Frank cautiously touched Leo’s arm. He didn’t feel any warmer than usual, but he flinched away, and a burn formed on the skin when Frank pulled his hand away. </p>
<p>Frank steadied himself protectively in front of Leo. “I’ve got you,” he promised. But as the arai advanced, he didn’t know how he could protect either of them. Leo could barely move, and Frank’s head was still throbbing. He wasn’t sure if there were eight demons in front of him, or if he was seeing double. 
</p>
<p>A dozen demons leaped from every direction, but Bob yelled, “SWEEP!”
</p>
<p>His broom whooshed over Frank’s head. The entire arai offensive line toppled backwards like bowling pins.
</p>
<p>More surged forward. Bob whacked one over the head and speared another, blasting them to dust. The others backed away.
</p>
<p>Frank held his breath, waiting for their Titan friend to be laid low with some terrible curse, but Bob seemed fine- a massive silvery bodyguard keeping death at bay with the world’s most terrifying cleaning implement. 
</p>
<p>“Bob, you okay?” Frank asked. “No curses?”
</p>
<p>“No curses for Bob!” Bob agreed.
</p>
<p>The arai snarled and circled, eyeing the broom. ‘The Titan is already cursed. Why should we torture him farther? Your dear friend, Percy Jackson, has already destroyed his memory.’
</p>
<p>Bob’s spearhead dipped.
</p>
<p>“Bob, don’t listen to them,” Frank said. “They’re evil.” 
</p>
<p>He didn’t know what the arai were talking about, but whatever it was, it made Bob unsure. And that was dangerous.  
</p>
<p>“Percy… My memory…” Bob turned. His wild white hair looked like an exploded halo, and his silvery eye held a deep pain. “It was him? Friends of Percy… Did you know?”
</p>
<p>‘Curse them, Titan!’ The arai urged, their red eyes gleaming. ‘Add to our numbers!’
</p>
<p>Frank’s heart pressed against his spine. “Bob, I don’t… I don’t know anything about this-”
</p>
<p>‘The son of Poseidon dumped you in the River Lethe. Removed your memories. He stole your life, leaving you in the palace of Hades to scrub floors!’ The arai said. 
</p>
<p>“Which way?” Leo whispered. “If we have to run?”
</p>
<p>Frank understood. If Bob wouldn’t protect them, their only chance was to run- but that wasn’t any chance at all. Maybe Frank could have done it if he was on his own, but with Leo so badly burned and blistered…
</p>
<p>“Bob, listen,” he tried again. “The arai want you to get angry. They spawn from bitter thoughts. Don’t give them what they want. We are your friends.”
</p>
<p>Even as he said it, Frank felt like a liar. He’d only known him for a few hours, maybe, and hadn’t trusted him most of that time because he knew he was a Titan. What made them friends? The fact that Frank needed him now? Frank always hated when the gods used their children for their errands and dirty work. Now Frank was doing the same thing. 
</p>
<p>‘You see his face?’ The arai growled. ‘The boy cannot even convince himself. Did these friends of Percy visit you after your memory was stolen? Did Percy visit you?’
</p>
<p>“No,” Bob murmured. His lower lip quivered. “The other one did.”
</p>
<p>Frank’s thoughts moved sluggishly. “The other one?” 
</p>
<p>“Nico.” Bob scowled at him, his eyes full of hurt. “Nico visited. Told me about Percy. Told me about Friends of Percy. Said Percy was good. Said he was a friend. That is why Bob helped.”
</p>
<p>The arai attacked, and this time Bob did not stop them. 
</p>
<p>----------
	</p>
<p>“Left!” Frank dragged Leo, slashing through the arai with a bear paw to clear a path. He probably brought down a dozen curses on himself, but he didn’t feel them right away, so he kept running.
	</p>
<p>His head throbbed with every step, and black spots danced in his vision. He wove between trees, leading Leo at a full sprint despite their pain. Leo stumbled occasionally, and Frank could feel the burns oozing as he grasped his wrist. Still, Leo didn’t pull away.
	</p>
<p>Frank realised how much he trusted him to get him out of this, even though they were far from friends. Even though, since the moment the Argo II appeared over New Rome, they’d done nothing but get on each other’s nerves. Frank’s heart sunk. He’d never even given Leo a chance… He couldn’t let him down now, but how could he save him? And if this curse killed him… No. He suppressed a surge of panic. Leo was all he had down here. He would figure out a way to cure him, whatever it took. First they had to escape. 
	</p>
<p>Leathery wings beat in the air above them. Angry hissing and the scuttling of clawed feet told him the demons were at their backs. 
	</p>
<p>As they ran past one of the black trees, he slashed his claws across the trunk. He heard it topple, followed by the satisfying crunch of several dozen arai as they were smashed flat. 
	</p>
<p>If a tree falls in the forest and crushes a demon, does the tree get cursed?
	</p>
<p>Frank slashed down another trunk, and then another. It bought them a few seconds, but not enough. 
	</p>
<p>Suddenly the darkness in front of them became thicker. Frank realised what it meant just in time. He grabbed Leo right before they both charged off the side of the cliff.
	</p>
<p>“What?” He cried. “What is it?” Leo was still mostly behind Frank, almost doubled over in pain. The blisters on his skin were popping almost as soon as they formed. 
	</p>
<p>“Cliff,” he gasped. “Big cliff.” 
	</p>
<p>“Which way, then?” 
	</p>
<p>Frank couldn’t see how far the cliff dropped. It could have been ten feet or ten thousand. There was no telling what was at the bottom. Frank could transform into a giant eagle and fly with Leo, but he doubted Leo’s burns would be able to stand his talons, and Frank wasn’t even sure if he could do a full transformation. Who knows how wide the gap was? Not to mention, they’d be more vulnerable in the air, swarmed by the demons. They could jump and hope for the best, but he doubted “the best” ever happened in Tartarus. 
	</p>
<p>So, two options: right or left, following the edge. 
	</p>
<p>He was about to choose randomly when a winged demon descended in front of him, hovering over the void on her bat wings, just out of reach.
	</p>
<p>‘Did you have a nice walk?’ asked the collective voice, echoing all around them. 
	</p>
<p>Frank turned. The arai poured out of the woods, making a crescent around them. One grabbed Leo’s arm. Leo yelled, perhaps in pain, perhaps in rage, and lit up his opposite hand, shoving it into the demons face and melting her head. 
	</p>
<p>The demon dissolved, but when Leo dropped his hand and turned back to Frank, his face had changed. His eyes burned with anger, which seemed directed at Frank, and the pain in his face had disappeared. He didn’t flinch when a blister popped on his forearm, or when he took a step forward towards Frank. He readied himself in a fighting stance, knees bent slightly, and arms lowered as he lit his hands on fire. He lunged at Frank, and Frank rolled out of the way just in time for Leo to just singe his shirt, but nothing else. 
	</p>
<p>“What did you do to him?” Frank yelled at the arai, jumping to the side as Leo came back at him. 
	</p>
<p>‘We did nothing,’ the demons said. ‘Your friend has unleashed a special curse- a bitter thought, a hope, perhaps, from a mortal, still living. From someone he betrayed. He knows he was right.’
	</p>
<p>Leo lunged again, and Frank instinctively swiped at him. His claws came away bloody, and Leo’s left sleeve was torn off. 
	</p>
<p>His stomach felt like it had dropped off a cliff. 
	</p>
<p>The words rang in his head: A bitter thought, a hope… Someone he betrayed… He saw the Argo II, firing on New Rome. He saw the camps, split, going to war. 
	</p>
<p>He saw Octavian. 
	</p>
<p>“That weasel,” he growled. 
	</p>
<p>The eyes of the demons blurred together like their voices. Frank’s head throbbed. He was beginning to feel some of the effects of the other curses.
	</p>
<p>Leo looked down at his arm, then up at Frank, and glared. “Stupid Roman.” He charged. 
	</p>
<p>Frank clenched his jaw. He didn’t care how many curses he suffered. He had to keep these leathery old hags focused on him and protect Leo, even if he was trying to kill him. He wasn’t going to let Octavian turn Greeks and Romans on each other. He wouldn’t win that easily. 
	</p>
<p>He yelled in fury and turned his back to Leo, attacking the arai at full force.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0019"><h2>19. Frank</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>For one exciting minute, Frank felt like he was winning. His claws cut through the arai as though they were made of powdered sugar. One panicked and flew face-first into a tree. Another screeched and tried to fly away, but Frank slicked open holes in her winks and sent her spirling into the chasm.</p><p>Each time a demon disintegrated, Frank felt a heavier sense of dread as another curse settled on him. Some were harsh and painful: a stabbing sensation through the stomach, a feeling like he was being crushed under a giant weight. Some were subtle: a chill up his back that wouldn’t disappear, an uncontrollable tic in his right eye.
	</p>
<p>Seriously, who curses you with their dying breath and says: I hope your eye twitches!
	</p>
<p>Frank knew that he had killed alot of monsters, especially in just the last couple of months. But he’d never really thought about it from the monsters’ point of view. Now all their pain and anger and bitterness poured over him, sapping his strength. 
	</p>
<p>The arai just kept coming. For every one he cut down, six more seemed to reappear. 
	</p>
<p>His arms grew tired. His form was harder to keep steady, and required more concentration. His body ached, and his vision blurred. Leo didn’t seem to be tiring any as he kept lunging at Frank, his fire coming scarily close before Frank could force himself to jump out of the way. 
	</p>
<p>If there was one positive out of all of this, the arai were always just out of reach of Leo’s flames, so he never accumulated any more curses. Of course, that also meant Leo was never inhibited. 
	</p>
<p>As Frank blundered out of the way of another attack from Leo, a demon pounced and sank its teeth into his thigh. Frank roared. He slashed the demon to dust, but immediately fell to his knees. 
	</p>
<p>His mouth burned worse than when he had swallowed the firewater of the Phlegethon. He doubled over, shuddering and retching, as a dozen fiery snakes seemed to work their way down his esophagus.
	</p>
<p>‘You have chosen,’ said the voice of the arai, ‘The curse of Phineas… an excellent painful death.’
	Frank tried to speak. His tongue felt like it was being microwaved. He remembered the old blind king who had chased harpies through Portland with a WeedWaker. Percy had challenged him to a contest, and the loser had drunk a deadly vial of gorgon’s blood. Frank didn’t remember the old blind man muttering a final curse, but as Phineas dissolved and returned to the underworld, he probably hadn't wished him, Percy, and Hazel long and happy lives. 
	</p>
<p>Frank wanted to scream. He wanted to tell the arai that this curse wasn’t fair. He hadn’t killed Phineas, Percy had! Percy had challenged Phineas, so why was Frank suffering?
	</p>
<p>But none of this was fair. He was in Tartarus, dying from gorgon’s blood and a dozen other curses while the only other person in Tartarus with him, his ally, his friend, was trying to kill him. Frank gritted his teeth and forced his arms into a weak transformation. His claws started to steam. White smoke curled off of the fur. 
	</p>
<p>I won’t die like this, he thought.
	Not only because it was painful and insultingly lame, but because his friends needed him. Hazel needed him. Leo needed him. Frank had no doubt that, as much as they were ignoring him now and enjoying the fight, once Frank was dead, the demons would turn their attention to him. He couldn’t leave Leo alone. 
	</p>
<p>The arai clustered around him, snickering and hissing.
	</p>
<p>‘His head will erupt first,’ the voice speculated.
	</p>
<p>‘No,’ the voice answered itself from another direction. ‘He will combust all at once.’
	</p>
<p>They were placing bets on how he would die… On what sort of scorch mark he would leave on the ground. 
	</p>
<p>“Bob,” he croaked. “I need you.” 
	</p>
<p>A helpless plea. He could barely hear himself, so how could the Titan? And why should Bob come to his aid twice? He knew the truth now. Frank was no friend. 
	</p>
<p>He raised his eyes one last time. His surroundings seemed to flicker. The sky boiled and the ground blistered. 
	</p>
<p>Frank realised that what he saw of Tartarus was only a watered-down version of it’s true horror- only what his demigod brain could handle. The worst of it was veiled, the same way the Mist veiled monsters from mortal sight. Now as Frank died, he began to see the truth. 
	</p>
<p>The air was the breath of Tartarus. All these monsters were just blood cells circulating through his body. Everything Frank saw was a dream in the mind of the dark god of the pit.
	</p>
<p>This must have been the way Nico had seen Tartarus, and it had almost destroyed his sanity. Nico… Frank had never given the boy enough credit. He only ever saw him as Hazel’s awkward, maybe slightly creepy at times, brother. But he and Leo had only made it this far through Tartarus because Nico di Angelo had behaved like Bob’s true friend. 
	</p>
<p>‘You see the horror of the pit?’ the arai said soothingly. ‘Give up, Frank Zhang. Isn’t death better than enduring this place?’
	</p>
<p>“I’m sorry…” Frank murmured. 
	</p>
<p>‘He apologises!’ The arai shrieked with delight. ‘He regrets his failed life, his crimes against the children of Tartarus!’
	</p>
<p>“No,” Frank said. “I’m sorry, Bob. I should have been honest with you. I shouldn’t have used you. Please… Forgive me. Protect Leo.” 
	</p>
<p>He didn’t expect Bob to hear him or to care, but it felt right to clear his conscience. He couldn’t blame anyone else for his troubles. Not the gods. Not Bob. Not Percy, who’s challenge against Phineas was now killing him. He couldn’t even blame Octavian . He had cursed Romans and Greeks to forever be at war, but everything that he had seen of the Greeks had only proved him right. When no one listened to him, he took extreme measures. That’s just what Octavian did best. It didn’t make it right, but it made it understandable. 
	</p>
<p>In the end, it didn’t matter who was to blame. All that mattered to Frank right now was getting Leo out of here safely. He had to keep his promise. 
	</p>
<p>It took all his remaining effort, but he got to his feet. Steam rose from his whole body. His legs shook. He couldn’t summon enough strength to change form at all, and hand to hand combat wasn’t his strong suit, but at least he could go out fighting. Maybe if he took down enough arai, Leo’s curse would dissipate and he could run while Frank fended the demons off. It was a long shot, but it was something. Frank readied his stance, raising his fists. 
	</p>
<p>But before he could strike, all the arai in front of him exploded into dust. 
</p>
<p>----------
	</p>
<p>Bob seriously knew how to use a broom.
	</p>
<p>He slashed back and forth, destroying the demons one after the other while Small Bob the kitten sat on his shoulder, arching his back and hissing, slashing at the air. 
	</p>
<p>In a matter of seconds, the arai were gone. Most had been vaporised. The smart ones had flown off into the darkness, shrieking in terror. 
	</p>
<p>Frank wanted to thank the Titan, but his voice wouldn’t work. His legs buckled. His ears rang. Through a red glow of pain, he saw Leo charging towards Frank, behind Bob. 
	</p>
<p>“Uh!” Frank grunted. 
	</p>
<p>Bob followed his gaze. He intercepted Leo and scooped him up. He yelled biting insults at the Titan and kicked at him, trying to free himself, but Bob didn’t seem to care. He carried Leo over to Frank and set him down gently, while keeping a heavy hand on his shoulder that prevented Leo from lunging at Frank.
	</p>
<p>The Titan touched his forehead with his free hand and frowned. “Owie.” 
	</p>
<p>Leo stopped fighting. His eyes cleared and the scowl on his face dropped. “Where- What-?” 
	</p>
<p>He saw Frank, and a series of expressions flashed across his face- relief, joy, shock, horror. “What’s wrong with him?”
	</p>
<p>Leo’s eyes raked over Frank, and Frank could practically hear his thinking- how could he help, how could he heal Frank, was the Phlegethon close enough that he could bring fire water back to keep him alive. Then his eyes landed on the burned shoulder of Frank’s shirt, and Leo’s eyes flickered to his hands. He clenched his hand tightly and looked away from Frank, but Frank could have sworn he saw tears in the corners of Leo’s eyes. 
	</p>
<p>Frank wanted to tell him that it was okay, that he was okay, but of course he wasn’t. He couldn’t even feel his body anymore. His consciousness was like a small helium balloon, loosely tied to the top of his head. It had no weight, no strength. It just kept expanding, getting lighter and lighter. He knew that soon it would either burst or the string would break, and his life would float away. Frank had never bothered to think if it was possible for him to die without his lifeline being set on fire. Maybe now that he was dying, the lifeline was burning away, not stopping no matter how much it was extinguished. Maybe it worked both ways. 
	</p>
<p>Leo absently wiped tears from his eyes with the back of his hand, but it only made the tears more obvious, leaving a clean spot in the dust Leo’s face where he had rubbed. 
	</p>
<p>Bob loomed over them, his broom planted like a flag. His face was unreadable, luminously white in the dark. 
	</p>
<p>“Lots of curses,” Bob said. “Friend of Percy has done bad things to monsters.” 
	</p>
<p>“Can you fix him?” Leo asked. His voice broke slightly. “Like you fixed me? Fix Frank!”
	</p>
<p>Bob frowned. He picked at the name tag on his uniform like it was a scab. 
	</p>
<p>Leo tried again. “Bob-” 
	</p>
<p>“Iapetus,” Bob said, his voice a low rumble. “Before Bob. It was Iapetus.” 
	</p>
<p>The air was absolutely still. Frank felt helpless, barely connected to the world. 
	</p>
<p>“I like Bob better.” Leo’s voice was surprisingly calm. “Which do you like?” 
	</p>
<p>The Titan regarded him with his pure silver eyes. “I do not know anymore.” 
	</p>
<p>He crouched next to Leo and studied Frank. Bob’s face looked haggard and careworn, as if he suddenly felt the weight of all his centuries. 
	</p>
<p>“I promised,” he murmured. “Nico asked me to help. I do not think Iapetus or Bob likes breaking promises.” He touched Frank’s forehead.
	</p>
<p>“Owie,” the Titan murmured. “Very big owie.” 
	</p>
<p>Frank sank back into his body. The ringing in his ears faded. His vision cleared. He still felt like he had swallowed a deep fryer. His insides bubbled. He could sense that the poison had only been slowed, not removed. 
	</p>
<p>But he was alive.
	</p>
<p>He tried to meet Bob’s eyes, to express his gratitude. His lolled against his chest.
	</p>
<p>“Bob cannot cure this,” Bob said. “Too much poison. Too many curses piled up.” 
	</p>
<p>Leo hesitantly reached a hand out, but pulled back before he touched Frank. Frank was relieved. His entire body felt like it was on fire, now that he could feel it. 
	</p>
<p>“What can we do, Bob?” Leo asked. “ Is the Phlegethon nearby?”
	</p>
<p>“Friend of Percy is too weak,” Bob said. “It’s too dangerous.” 
	</p>
<p>I noticed, Frank wanted to yell. 
	</p>
<p>At least the Titan called himself Bob. Even if he blamed Percy for taking his memory and Frank for exploiting the fact, maybe he would help Leo if Frank didn’t make it.
	</p>
<p>“No,” Leo insisted. “No, there has to be a way. Something to heal him.”
	</p>
<p>Bob placed his hand on Frank’s chest. A cold tingle like the eucalyptus oil his grandmother used to give him when he was sick spread across his sternum, but as soon as Bob lifted his hand, the relief stopped. Frank’s lungs felt as hot as lava again.
	</p>
<p>“Tartarus kills demigods,” Bob said. “It heals monsters, but you do not belong. Tartarus will not heal Friend of Percy. The pit hates your kind.” 
	</p>
<p>“I don’t care,” Leo said. “Even here, there has to be some place he can rest, some kind of cure he can take. Maybe back at the altar of Hermes, or-”
	</p>
<p>In the distance, a deep voice bellowed- a voice that Frank recognised, unfortunately. 
	</p>
<p>“I SMELL HIM!” roared the giant. “BEWARE, POSEIDON SPAWN! I COME FOR YOU!”
	</p>
<p>“Polybotes,” Bob said. “He hates Poseidon and his descendants. He is very close now.” 
	</p>
<p>Leo struggled to get Frank to his feet. He hated making him work so hard, but he felt like a sack of billiard balls. Even with Leo supporting almost all his weight, he could barely stand. 
	</p>
<p>“Bob, I’m going, with or without you,” he said. “Will you help?” 
	</p>
<p>The kitten Small Bob mewed and began to purr, rubbing against Big Bob’s chin. 
	</p>
<p>Bob looked at Frank, and Frank wished he could read the Titan’s expression. Was he angry, or just thoughtful? Was he planning revenge, or was he just feeling hurt because Frank had lied about being his friend? 
	</p>
<p>“There is one place,” Bob said at last. “There is a giant who might know what to do.” 
	</p>
<p>Leo almost dropped Frank. “A giant. Uh, Bob, giants are bad.” 
	</p>
<p>“One is good,” Bob insisted. “Trust me, and I will take you… Unless Polybotes and the others catch us first.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0020"><h2>20. Jason</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Jason fell asleep on the job. Which was bad, since he was a thousand feet in the air.</p><p>He should have known better. It was the morning after their encounter with Sciron the bandit, and Jason was on duty, fighting some wild venti who were threatening the ship. When he slashed through the last one, he forgot to hold his breath.
	</p>
<p>A stupid mistake. When a wind spirit disintegrates, it creates a vacuum. Unless you’re holding your breath, the air gets sucked right out of your lungs. The pressure in your inner ears drops so fast, you black out.
	</p>
<p>That’s what happened to Jason. 
	</p>
<p>Even worse, he instantly plunged into a dream. In the back of his subconscious, he thought: Really? Now?
	</p>
<p>He needed to wake up, or he would die; but he wasn’t able to hold onto that though. In the dream, he found himself on the roof of a tall building, the nighttime skyline of Manhattan spread around him. A cold wind whipped through his clothes. 
	</p>
<p>A few blocks away, clouds gathered above the Empire State Building- the entrance to Mount Olympus itself. The air was metallic with the small of oncoming rain. The top of the skyscraper was lit up as usual, but the lights seemed to be malfunctioning. They flickered from purple to orange as if the colours were fighting for dominance. 
	</p>
<p>On the roof of Jason’s building stood his old comrades from Camp Jupiter: an array of demigods in combat armor, their Imperial gold weapons and shields glinting in the dark. He saw Dakota and Nathan, Leila and Marcus. Octavian stood to one side, thin and pale, his eyes red-rimmed from sleeplessness or anger (both a common look for the augur), a string of sacrificial stuffed animals around his waist. His augur’s white robe was draped over a purple T-shirt and cargo pants. 
	</p>
<p>In the center line stood Reyna, her metal dogs Aurum and Argentum at her side, Upon seeing her, Jason felt an incredible pang of guilt. He’d let her believe they had a future together. He had never been in love with her, and he hadn’t led her on, exactly… But he also hadn’t shut her down. 
	</p>
<p>Instead, he’d disappeared, leaving her to run the camp on her own (Okay, that hadn’t exactly been Jason’s idea, but still…). Then he had returned to Camp Jupiter with his new girlfriend Piper and a whole bunch of Greek friends in a warship. They’d fired on the Forum, on her home, and run away, leaving Reyna with a war on her hands. 
	</p>
<p>In his dream she looked tired. Others might not notice, but he’d worked with her long enough to recognise the weariness in her eyes, the tightness in her shoulders under the straps of her armor. Her dark hair was wet, like she’d taken a hasty shower. 
	</p>
<p>The Roman’s stared at the roof-access door as if they were waiting for someone. 
	</p>
<p>When the door opened, two people emerged. One was a faun- no, Jason thought- a satyr. He’d learned the difference at Camp Half-Blood, and Coach Hedge was always eager to correct him if he made a mistake. Jason guessed being a teacher never really left him. 
	</p>
<p>Roman fauns tended to hang around and beg and eat. Satyrs were more helpful, more engaged in demigod affairs. Jason didn’t think he’d seen this particular satyr before, but he was sure the guy was from the Greek side. No faun would look so purposeful walking up to an armed group of Romans in the middle of the night. 
	</p>
<p>He wore a green Nature Conservancy T-shirt with pictures of endangered whales and tigers and stuff. Nothing covered his shaggy legs and hooves. He had a bushy goatee, curly brown hair tucked into a Rasta-style cap, and a set of reed pipes around his neck. His hands fidgeted with the hem of his shirt, but considering the way he studied the Romans, noting their positions and their weapons, Jason figured this satyr had been in combat before. 
	</p>
<p>At his side was a redheaded girl Jason recognised from Camp Half-Blood- their oracle, Rachel Elizabeth Dare. She had long frizzy hair, a plain white blouse, and jeans covered in hand-drawn ink designs. She held a blue plastic hairbrush that she tapped nervously against her thigh like a good luck talisman.
	</p>
<p>Jason remembered her at the campfire, reciting lines of prophecy that sent Jason, Piper, and Leo on their first quest together. She was a regular mortal teenager- not a demigod- but for reasons Jason never understood, the spirit of Delphi had chosen her as its host. 
	</p>
<p>The real question: What was she doing with the Romans?
	</p>
<p>She stepped forward, her eyes fixed on Reyna. “You got my message.”
	</p>
<p>Octavian snorted. “That’s the only reason you made it this far alive, Graecus. I hope you’ve come to discuss surrender terms.”
	</p>
<p>“Octavian…” Reyna started. It was meant as a warning, Jason could tell, but really she just sounded like a tired mother. Jason wondered how much Octavian had been wearing her down.
	</p>
<p>“At least search them!” Octavian protested.
	</p>
<p>“No need,” Reyna said, studying Rachel Dare. “Do you bring weapons?”
	</p>
<p>Rachel shrugged. “I hit Kronos in the eye with this hairbrush once. Otherwise, no.” 
	The Romans didn’t seem to know what to make of that. Given that Aurum and Argentum remained relaxed at Reyna’s heels, Jason didn’t think the mortal was kidding. 
	</p>
<p>“And your friend?” Reyna nodded to the satyr. “I thought you were coming alone.” 
	</p>
<p>“This is Grover Underwood,” Rachel said. “He’s a leader of the Council.”
	</p>
<p>“What council?” Octavian demanded.
	</p>
<p>“Cloven Elders, man.” Grover’s voice was high and reedy, as if he were terrified, but Jason suspected the satyr had more steel than he let on. “Seriously, don’t you Romans have nature and trees and stuff? I’ve got some news you need to hear. Plus, I’m a card-carrying protector. I’m here to, you know, protect Rachel.”
	</p>
<p>Reyna looked like she was trying not to smile. “But no weapons?”
	</p>
<p>“Just the pipes.” Grover’s expression became wistful. “Percy always said my cover of ‘Born to be Wild’ should count as a lethal weapon, but I don’t think it’s that bad.” 
	</p>
<p>Octavian sneered. “Another friend of Percy Jackson. That’s all I need to hear.” 
	</p>
<p>Reyna held up her hand for silence. Her gold and silver dogs sniffed the air, but they remained calm and attentive at her side. 
	</p>
<p>“So far, our guests speak the truth,” Reyna said. “Be warned, Rachel and Grover, if you start to lie, this conversation will not go well for you. Say what you came to say.”
	</p>
<p>From her jeans pocket, Rachel dug out a piece of paper like a napkin. “A message. From Leo Valdez.”
	</p>
<p>Jason wasn’t sure he’d heard her right. Leo was in Tartarus. He couldn’t send anyone a note on a napkin.
	</p>
<p>‘Maybe I’ve hit the water and died,’ his subconscious said. ‘This isn’t a real vision. It’s some sort of after-death hallucination.’ 
	</p>
<p>But the dream seemed very real. He could feel the wind sweeping across the roof. He could smell the storm. He could hear Octavian snarling at Leo’s name. Lightning flickered over the Empire State Building, making the Roman’s armor flash in a way he was very familiar with.
	</p>
<p>Reyna took the note. As she read it, her eyebrows crept higher. Her mouth parted in shock. Finally, she looked up at Rachel. “Is this a joke?”
	</p>
<p>“I wish,” Rachel said. “They’re really in Tartarus.” 
	</p>
<p>“But how-” 
	</p>
<p>“I don’t know,” Rachel said. “The note appeared in the sacrificial fire at our dining pavilion. That’s Leo’s handwriting. We checked it against the blueprints he had left in the Hephaestus cabin. He asks for you by name.” 
</p>
<p>Octavian scrunched up his face. “Tartarus? What do you mean?” 
</p>
<p>Reyna handed him the letter. 
</p>
<p>Octavian muttered as he read: “Rome, Arachne, Athena- Athena Parthenos?” He looked around in outrage, as if waiting for someone to contradict what he was reading. “A Greek trick! Greeks are infamous for their tricks!” 
</p>
<p>Reyna took back the note before Octavian could tear it to shreds in his anger. “Why ask this of me?”
</p>
<p>Rachel smiled. “Because Leo is smart. He’s innovative. He believes you can do this, Reyna Avila Ramirez-Arellano.” 
</p>
<p>Jason felt like he had been slapped. Nobody ever used Reyna’s full name. She hated telling anyone what it was. They only time Jason had ever said it aloud, just trying to pronounce it correctly, she’s given him a murderous look. ‘That was the name of a little girl in San Juan,’ she told him. ‘I left it behind when I left Puerto Rico.’
</p>
<p>Reyna scowled. “How did you-”
</p>
<p>“Uh,” Grover Underwood interrupted. “You mean your initials are RA-RA?”
</p>
<p>Reyna’s hand drifted toward her dagger.
</p>
<p>“But that’s not important!” The satyr said quickly. “Look, we wouldn’t have risked coming here if we didn’t believe this could work. A Roman leader returning the most important Greek statue to Camp Half-Blood- it could prevent a war.” 
</p>
<p>“This isn’t a trick,” Rachel added. “We’re not lying. Ask your dogs.” 
</p>
<p>The metallic greyhounds didn’t react. Reyna stroked Aurum’s head thoughtfully. “The Athena Parthenos… So the legend is true.” 
</p>
<p>“Reyna!” Octavian cried. “You can’t seriously be considering this! You can’t listen to those- those Graecus!” He pointed accusingly at the note in Reyna’s hand. “He fired on us! And now he wants to prevent the war that he started?” Octavian let out a sharp laugh. “Even if the statue still exists, you see what they’re doing. We’re on the verge of attacking them- destroying the stupid Greeks once and for all- and they concoct this stupoid errand to divert your attention. They want to send you to your death!”  
</p>
<p>The other Romans muttered, glaring at their visitors. Jason remembered how persuasive Octavian could be, and he was winning the officers to his side.
</p>
<p>Rachel Dare faced the augur. “Octavian, son of Apollo, you should take this more seriously. Even Romans respected your father’s Oracle of Delphi.”
</p>
<p>“Ha!” Octavian sneered. “You’re the Oracle of Delphi? Right. And I’d the Emperor Nero!”
</p>
<p>“At least Nero could play music,” Grover muttered.
</p>
<p>Octavian balled his fists. 
</p>
<p>Suddenly the wind shifted. It swirled around the Romans with a hissing sound, like a nest of snakes. Rachel Dare glowed in a green aura, as if hit by a soft emerald spotlight. Then the wind faded and the aura was gone.
</p>
<p>The sneer melted from Octavian’s face. The Romans rustled uneasily.
</p>
<p>“It’s your decision,” Rachel said, as if nothing had happened. “I have no specific prophecy to offer you, but I can see glimpses of the future. I see the Athena Parthenos on Half-Blood Hill. I see her bringing it.” She pointed at Reyna. “Also, Ella has been murmuring lines from your Sibylline Books-”
</p>
<p>“What?” Reyna interrupted. “The Sibylline Books were destroyed centuries ago.”
</p>
<p>“I knew it!” Octavian pounded his fist into his palm. “That harpy they6 brought back from the quest- Ella. I knew she was spouting prophecies! Now I understand. She- She somehow memorised a copy of the Sibylline Books.”
</p>
<p>Reyna shook her head in disbelief. “How is that possible?”
</p>
<p>“We don’t know,” Rachel admitted. “But, yes, that seems to be the case. Ella has a perfect memory. She loves books. Somewhere, somehow, she read your Roman book of prophecies. Now she’s the only source for them.” 
</p>
<p>“Your friends lied,” Octavian said. “They told us the harpy was just muttering gibberish. They stole her!” 
</p>
<p>Grover huffed indignantly. “Ella isn’t your property! She’s a free creature. Besides, she wants to be at Camp Half-Blood. She’s dating one of my friends, Tyson.”
</p>
<p>“The Cyclops,” Reyna remembered. “A harpy dating a Cyclops…” 
</p>
<p>“That’s not relevant!” Octavian snapped. “The harpy has valuable Roman prophecies. If the Greeks won’t return her, we should take their Oracle hostage! Guards!” 
</p>
<p>Two centurions advanced, their pila leveled. Grover brought his pipes to his lips, played a quick jig, and their spears turned into Christmas trees. The guards dropped them in surprise. 
</p>
<p>“Enough!” Reyna shouted. 
</p>
<p>She didn’t often raise her voice. When she did, everyone listened. 
</p>
<p>“We’ve strayed from the point,” she said. “Rachel Dare, you’re telling me Leo Valdez is in Tartarus, yet he has found a way to send this message. He wants me to bring this statue from the ancient lands to your camp.”
</p>
<p>Rachel nodded. “Only a Roman can return it to restore peace.” 
</p>
<p>“And why would the Romans want peace,” Reyna asked, “after your ship attacked our city?”
</p>
<p>“You know why,” Rachel said. “To avoid war. To reconcile the gods’ Greek and Roman sides. We have to work together to defeat Gaea.”
</p>
<p>Octavian stepped forward to speak, but Reyna shot him a withering look. 
</p>
<p>“According to Percy Jackson,” Reyna said, “the battle with Gaea will be fought in the ancient lands. In Greece.” 
</p>
<p>“That’s where the giants are,” Rachel agreed. “Whatever magic, whatever ritual the giants are planning to wake the Earth Mother, I sense it will happen in Greece. But… Well, our problems aren’t limited to the ancient lands. That’s why I brought Grover to talk to you.” 
</p>
<p>The satyr tugged his goatee. “Yeah… See, over the last few months, I've been talking to satyrs and nature spirits across the continent. They’re all saying the same thing. Gaea is stirring- I mean, she’s right on the edge of consciousness. She’s whispering in the minds of naiads, trying to turn them. She’s causing earthquakes, uprooting the dryads’ trees. Last week alone, she appeared in human form in a dozen different places, scaring the horns off some of my friends. In Colorado, a giant stone fist rose out of a mountain and swatted some Party Ponies like flies.” 
</p>
<p>Reyna frowned. “Party Ponies?” 
</p>
<p>“Long story,” Rachel said. “The point is: Gaea will rise everywhere. She’s already stirring. No place will be safe from the battle. And we know that her first targets are going to be the demigod camps. She wants us destroyed.” 
</p>
<p>“Speculation,” Octavian said. “A distraction. The Greeks fear our attack. They’re trying to confuse us. It’s the Trojan Horse all over again!” 
</p>
<p>Reyna twisted the silver ring she always wore, with the sword and torch symbol of her mother, Bellona. 
</p>
<p>“Marcus,” she said, “bring Scipio from the stables.” 
</p>
<p>“Reyna, no!” Octavian protested. 
</p>
<p>She faced the Greeks. “I will do this for the gods, for the hope of peace between our camps, but do not think I have forgotten the insults to Camp Jupiter. Your ship fired on our city. You declared war- not us. Now, leave.”
</p>
<p>Grover stamped his hoof. “Percy would never-” 
</p>
<p>“Grover,” Rachel said, “we should go.” 
</p>
<p>Her tone said: Before it’s too late. 
</p>
<p>After they had retreated back down the stairs, Octavian wheeled on Reyna. “Are you mad?” 
</p>
<p>“I am praetor of the legion,” Reyna said. “I judge this to be in the best interest of Rome.” 
</p>
<p>“To get yourself killed? To break our oldest laws and travel to the ancient lands? How will you even find their ship, assuming you survive the journey?”
</p>
<p>“I will find them,” Reyna said. “If they are sailing for Greece, I know a place Jason will stop. To face the ghosts in the House of Hades, he will need an army. There is only one place where he can find that sort of help.” 
</p>
<p>In Jason’s dream, the building seemed to tilt under his feet. He remembered a conversation he’d had with Reyna years ago, a promise they had made to each other. He knew what she was talking about. 
</p>
<p>“This is insanity,” Octavian muttered. “We’re already under attack. We must take the offensive! Those hairy dwarfs have been stealing our supplies, sabotaging our scouting parties- you know the Greeks sent them.”
</p>
<p>“Perhaps,” Reyna said. “But you will not launch an attack without my orders. Continue scouting the enemy camp. Secure your positions. Gather all the allies you can, and if you catch those dwarfs, you have my blessing to send them back to Tartarus. But do not attack Camp Half-Blood until I return.” 
</p>
<p>Octavian narrowed his eyes. “While you’re gone, the augur is the senior officer. I will be in charge.” 
</p>
<p>“I know.” Reyna didn’t sound happy about it, and Jason couldn’t blame her. “But you have my orders. You all heard them.” She scanned the faces of the centurions, daring them to question her.
</p>
<p>She stormed off, her purple cloak billowing and her dogs at her heels. 
</p>
<p>Once she was gone, Octavian turned to the centurions. “Gather all senior officers. I want a meeting as soon as Reyna has left on her fool’s quest. There will be a few changes in the legion’s plans.”
</p>
<p>One of the centurions opened his mouth to respond, but for some reason he spoke in Piper’s voice: “WAKE UP!”
</p>
<p>Jason’s eyes snapped open, and he saw the ocean’s surface hurtling towards him.
</p>
<p>----------
	</p>
<p>Jason survived- barely.
</p>
<p>Later, his friends explained that they hadn’t seen him falling from the sky until the last second. There was no time to get Percy from below deck to cushion his fall; no time to formulate a rescue plan. 
	</p>
<p>Only Piper’s quick thinking and charmspeak had saved his life. She’d yelled WAKE UP! with so much force that Jason felt like he’d been hit with defibrillator paddles. With a millisecond to spare, he’d summoned the winds and avoided becoming a floating patch of demigod grease on the surface of the Adriatic. 
	</p>
<p>Back on board, he had pulled Annabeth aside and suggested a course correction. She narrowed her eyes, but didn’t ask why. Jason thought that it was only because she was too busy rewriting the directions and timetable in her mind already.  
	</p>
<p>“It’s a little out of the way, but it hopefully shouldn’t throw us too off schedule.” 
	</p>
<p>Now, sitting with his friends in the mess hall, Jason felt so awake, he doubted he would sleep for a week. His hands were jittery. He couldn’t stop tapping his feet. He guessed that this was how Leo felt all the time, except that Leo had a sense of humor. 
	</p>
<p>After what Jason had seen in his dream, he didn’t feel much like joking. 
	</p>
<p>While they ate lunch, Jason reported on his midair vision. His friends were quiet long enough for Coach Hedge to finish a peanut butter and banana sandwich, along with the ceramic plate. 
	</p>
<p>Hazel had pushed her plate away from her, and was covering her mouth, her eyes welling up with tears. She looked like she didn’t know if she wanted to laugh or cry. Jason felt much the same. Leo was still alive- that’s great news! But for how much longer? What had he been subjected to down there? 
	</p>
<p>“A note from Leo.” Percy shook his head in amazement. “I don’t see how that’s possible, but if it is-” 
	</p>
<p>“He’s alive,” Hazel choked out. “Thank the gods.” 
	</p>
<p>Annabeth frowned slightly. “Jason, what did Octavian mean, about Reyna break their oldest laws to come and find us?”
	</p>
<p>“Coming to the ancient lands… It’s taboo. She’ll be stripped of her praetorship,” Jason explained. 
	</p>
<p>“If she lives,” Piper said. “It was hard enough for us to make it this far with seven demigods and a warship.”
	</p>
<p>“And me.” Coach Hedge belched, then continued to chew on the fork he was holding. “Don’t forget, cupcake, you’ve got the satyr advantage.” 
	</p>
<p>Jason had to smile. Coach Hedge could be pretty ridiculous, but Jason was glad he’d come along. He thought about the satyr he’d seen in his dream, Grover Underwood. He couldn’t imagine a satyr more different from Coach Hedge, but they both seemed brave in their own way.
	</p>
<p>It made Jason wonder about the fauns back at Camp Jupiter- whether they could be like that if the Roman demigods expected more from them. Another thing to add to his list…
	</p>
<p>His list. He hadn’t even realised that he had one until that moment, but ever since leaving Camp Half-Blood, he’d been thinking of ways to make Camp Jupiter more… Greek. 
	</p>
<p>He’d grown up at Camp Jupiter. He’d done well there. But he’d always been a little unconventional. He chafed under the rules. 
	</p>
<p>He had joined the Fifth Cohort because everyone told him not to. They warned him it was the worst unit. So he thought, ‘Fine, I’ll make it the best.’
	</p>
<p>Once he became praetor, he’d campaigned to rename the legion the First Legion rather than the Twelfth Legion, to symbolize a new start for Rome. The idea had almost caused a mutiny. New Rome was all about tradition and legacies; the rules didn’t change easily. Jason had learned to live with that and even rose to the top. 
	</p>
<p>But now that he had seen both camps, he couldn’t shake the feeling that Camp Half-Blood might have taught him more about himself. If he survived this war with Gaea and returned to Camp Jupiter as a praetor, could he change things for the better?
	</p>
<p>That was his duty.
	</p>
<p>So why did the idea fill him with dread? He felt guilty about leaving Reyna to rule without him, but still… part of him wanted to go back to Camp Half-Blood with Piper and Leo when all of this was finally over. He guessed that made him a pretty terrible leader.
	</p>
<p>“Jason?” Percy asked. “Argo II to Jason. Come in.” 
	</p>
<p>He realised his friends were looking at him expectantly. They needed reassurance. Whether or not he made it back to New Rome after the war, Jason had to step up now and act like a praetor. 
	</p>
<p>“Yeah, sorry.” He touched the groove that Sciron had cut into his hair. “Crossing the Atlantic is a hard journey, no doubt. But I’d never bet against Reyna. If anyone can make it, she will.” 
	</p>
<p>Piper circled her spoon through her soup. Jason was still a little nervous about her getting jealous of Reyna, but when she looked up, she gave him a dry smile that seemed more teasing that insecure.
	</p>
<p>“Well, I’d love to see Reyna again,” she said. “But how is she supposed to find us?”
	</p>
<p>Percy took a large bite out of his blue waffle. “Can’t we just send her an Iris-message?” Annabeth swatted his arm, giving her boyfriend a disgusted look as he spoke with his mouth full. 
</p>
<p>“They’re not worrying very well,” Coach Hedge put in. “Horrible reception. Every night, I swear, I could kick that rainbow goddess…”
</p>
<p>He faltered. His face turned bright red. 
</p>
<p>“Coach?” Piper grinned. “Who have you been calling every night?”
</p>
<p>“No one!” Hedge snapped. “Nothing! I just meant-” 
</p>
<p>“He means that we’ve already tried,” Hazel intervened, and the coach gave her a grateful look. “Some magic is interfering… Gaea, maybe. Contacting the Romans is even harder. I think they’re shielding themselves.”
</p>
<p>Jason looked from Hazel to the coach, wondering what was going on with the satyr and how Hazel knew about it. Now that Jason thought about it, the coach hadn’t mentioned his cloud nymph girlfriend Mellie in a long time…
</p>
<p>Percy drummed his fingers on the table. “I don’t suppose Reyna has a cellphone…? Nah, nevermind. She’d probably have bad reception on a pegasus flying over the Atlantic.”
</p>
<p>Jason thought about the Argo II’s journey across the ocean, the dozens of encounters that had nearly killed them. Thinking about Reyna making that journey alone- he couldn’t decide whether it was terrifying or awe-inspiring. 
</p>
<p>“She’ll find us,” he said. “She mentioned something in the dream- she’s expecting me to go to a certain place on our way to the House of Hades. I-I’d forgotten about it, actually, but she’d right. It’s a place I need to visit.”
</p>
<p>Piper leaned toward him, her caramel braid falling over her shoulder. Her multicoloured eyes made it hard for him to think straight. 
</p>
<p>“And where is this place?” She asked. 
</p>
<p>“A… Uh, a town called Split. In Croatia.” 
</p>
<p>“Split.” She smelled really good- like blooming honeysuckle. 
</p>
<p>“Um, yeah.” Jason wondered if Piper was working some sort of Aphrodite magic on him- like maybe every time he mentioned Reyna’s name, she would befuddle him so much that he couldn’t think about anything but Piper. He supposed it wasn’t the worst sort of revenge. “In fact, we should be getting close.”
</p>
<p>Annabeth nodded and checked the pocket map that she had purchased in Venice. It was so small, Jason couldn’t see how she could make out any of the text on it, but she managed just fine. “We have maybe ten minutes to harbor.”
</p>
<p>“I dunno why you want to go to a town called Split,” Percy said “I mean, you name a city Split, you gotta figure it’s a warning to, y’know, split. Kinda like naming your city Get Out!” 
</p>
<p>Hazel scrunched up her nose. “Wait. Why are we going to Croatia?” 
</p>
<p>Jason noticed that the others were reluctant to meet her eyes. Since her trick with the Mist against Sciron the bandit, even Jason felt a little nervous around her. He knew that wasn’t fair to Hazel. It was hard enough being a child of Pluto, but she’d pulled off some serious magic on that cliff. And afterward, according to Hazel, Pluto himself had appeared to her, That was something Romans typically called a bad omen. 
</p>
<p>Annabeth flattened her pocket map on the table, between her and Hazel, and traced along the coast line with her finger. “Well, technically we’ve been in Croatian territory for the past day or so. All that coastline we’ve been sailing past is it, but back in the Roman times it was called-”
</p>
<p>“Dalmatia,” Nico finished, making Jason jump. 
</p>
<p>Holy Romulus… Jason wished he could put a bell around Nico di Angelo’s neck to remind him the guy was there. Nico had this disturbing habit of standing silently in the corner, blending into the shadows.
</p>
<p>He stepped forward, his dark eyes fixed on Jason. Since they’d rescued him from the bronze jar in Rome, Nico had slept very little and eaten even less, as if he were subsisting on those emergency pomegranate seeds from the Underworld. He reminded Jason a little too much of a flesh-eating ghoul he’d once fought in San Bernardino.
	</p>
<p>“Croatia used to be Dalmatia,” Nico said. “A major Roman province. You want to visit Diocletian’s palace, don’t you?”
	</p>
<p>Coach Hedge managed another heroic belch. “Whose palace? And is Dalmatia where those Dalmatian dogs come from? That 101 Dalmatians movie- I still have nightmares.” 
	</p>
<p>Percy furrowed his brow. “Why would you have nightmares about that?”
	</p>
<p>Hedge looked like he was about to launch into a major speech about the evils of cartoon Dalmatians, but Jason decided he didn’t want to know.
	</p>
<p>“Nico is right,” he said. “I need to go to Diocletian’s Palace. It’s where Reyna will go first, because she knows I would go there.” 
	</p>
<p>Piper raised an eyebrow. “And why would Reyna think that? Because you’ve always had a mad fascination with Croatian culture?”
	</p>
<p>Jason stared at his uneaten sandwich. It was hard to talk about his life before Juno wiped his memory.. His years at Camp Jupiter seemed made up, like a movie he’d acted in decades before. 
	</p>
<p>“Reyna and I used to talk about Diocletian,” he said. “We both kind of idolized the guy as a leader. We talked about how we’d like to visit Diocletian’s Palace. Of course we knew that was impossible. No one could travel to the ancient lands. But still, we made this pact that if we ever did, that’s where we’d go.”
	</p>
<p>“Diocletian…” Percy considered the name, then shook his head. “I got nothing. Why was he so important?”
	</p>
<p>Annabeth smacked his shoulder. “He was the last great pagan emperor of Rome!”
	</p>
<p>Percy rolled his eyes endearingly. “Why am I not surprised you know that, Wise Girl?”
	</p>
<p>“Why wouldn’t I? He was the last one who worshipped the Olympian gods, before Constantine came along and adopted Christianity.” 
	,p&gt;Hazel nodded. “I remember something about that. The nuns at St. Agnes taught us that Diocletian was a huge villain, right along with Nero and Caligula.” She looked askance at Jason. “Why would you idolize him?”
	</p>
<p>“He wasn’t a total villain,” Jason said. “Yeah, he persecuted Christians, but otherwise he was a good ruler. He worked his way up from nothing by joining the legion. His parents were former slaves… Or at least his mom was. Demigods know he was a son of Jupiter- the last demigod to rule Rome. He was also the first emperor to retire, like, peacefully, and give up his power. He was from Dalmatia, so he moved back there and built a retirement palace. The town of Split grew up around…”
	</p>
<p>He faltered when he looked around the table and saw Percy who was mimicking taking notes with an air pencil. 
	</p>
<p>“Go on, Professor Grace!” He said, wide-eyed. “I wanna get an A on the test.” 
	</p>
<p>“Shut up Jackson,” Jason said, attempting to suppress a smile. He could see that Annabeth was doing the same, glaring at her boyfriend half-heartedly while a grin tugged on the corners of her lips. 
	</p>
<p>Piper sipped another spoonful of soup. “So why is Diocletian’s Palace so special?”
	</p>
<p>Nico leaned over and plucked up a grape from his sister’s plate. Probably that was the guy’s entire diet for the day. “It’s said to be haunted by the ghost of Diocletian.”
	</p>
<p>“Who was a son of Jupiter, like me,” Jason said. “His tomb was destroyed centuries ago, but Reyna and I used to wonder if we could find Diocletian’s ghost and ask where he was buried… Well, according to the legends, his scepter was buried with him.” 
	</p>
<p>Nico gave him a thin, creepy smile. “Ah… That legend.” 
	</p>
<p>“What legend?” Hazel asked. 
	</p>
<p>Nico turned to his sister. “Supposedly Diocletian’s scepter could summon the ghosts of the Roman legions, any of them who worshipped the old gods.”
	</p>
<p>Percy whistled. “Okay, now I’m interested. Be nice to have a botty-kicking army of pagan zombies on our side when we enter the House of Hades.”
	</p>
<p>“Not sure I would have put it that way,” Jason said, “but yeah.”
	</p>
<p>“We don’t have much time,” Annabeth warned. “It’s already July ninth. We have to get to Epirus, close the Doors of Death-”
	</p>
<p>“Which are guarded,” Hazel murmured, “by a smoky giant and a sorceress who wants…” She hesitated. “Well, I’m not sure. But according to Pluto, she plans to ‘rebuild her domain.’ Whatever that means, it’s bad enough that my dad felt like warning me personally.”
	</p>
<p>Annabeth hummed. “And if we survive all that, we still have to find out where the giants are waking Gaea and get there before the first of August. Besides, the longer Leo and Frank are in Tartarus-”
	</p>
<p>“I know,” Jason said. “We won’t take long in Split. But looking for the scepter is worth a try. While we’re at it, I can leave a message for Reyna, letting her know the route we’re taking for Epirus.”
	</p>
<p>Nico nodded. “The scepter of Diocletian could make a huge difference. You’ll need my help.”
	</p>
<p>Jason tried not to show his discomfort, but his skin prickled at the thought of going anywhere alone with Nico di Angelo.
	</p>
<p>Percy had shared some disturbing stories about Nico. His loyalties weren’t always clear. He spent more time with that dead than the living. Once, he’d lured Percy into a trap in the palace of Hades. Maybe Nico had made up for that by helping the Greeks against the Titans, but still…
	</p>
<p>Piper squeezed his hand. “Hey, that sounds fun. I’ll go, too.” 
	</p>
<p>Jason wanted to yell: ‘Thank the gods!’
	</p>
<p>But Nico shook his head. “You can’t, Piper. It should only be Jason and me. Diocletian’s ghost might appear for a son of Jupiter, but any other demigods would most likely… Ah, spook him. And I’m the only one who can talk to his spirit. Even Hazel won’t be able to do that.”
	</p>
<p>Nico’s eyes held a gleam of challenge. He seemed curious as to whether or not Jason would protest. 
	</p>
<p>The ship’s bell sounded.
	</p>
<p>“We’ve arrived,” Annabeth announced. 
	</p>
<p>Jason stood. “Alright. Percy, you’re in charge of defending the ship. Annabeth, repair as much as you can. The rest of you, help out wherever is needed. Nico and I…” He faced the son of Hades. “We have a ghost to find.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Just wondering- How would y'all feel about an original story kinda in the same style of Riordan? Y'know, mythology based, but on a mythology that he hasn't touched on and with my own characters. It would all be my own research, my own writing, just heavily inspired by Riordan's style. I have part of the first chapter finished, and the working title is "Alejandra Galaz and the Four Tezcatlipoca". It's based in Aztec mythology, which is very loose and hard to research, but it also gives me alot of creative freedom. Anyways, lemme know in the comments if you would be interested in reading it!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0021"><h2>21. Jason</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>I ended splitting this chapter in half, because it got really long, and I didn't even get to everything I wanted to! Hopefully I will soon! So there will be a lot more Jason POV in the future.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Jason first saw the angel at the ice cream cart.</p><p>The Argo II had anchored in the bay along with six or seven cruise ships. As usual, the mortals didn’t pay the trireme any attention; but just to be safe, Jason and Nico hopped on a skiff from one of the tourist boats so they would look like part of the crowd when they came ashore. 
	</p><p>At first glance, Split seemed like a cool place. Curving around the harbor was a long esplanade lined with palm trees. At the sidewalk cafes, European teenagers were hanging out, speaking a dozen different languages and enjoying the sunny afternoon. The air smelled of grilled meat and fresh-cut flowers. 
	</p><p>Beyond the main boulevard, the city was a hodgepodge of medieval castle towers, Roman walls, limestone town houses with red tiled roofs, and modern office buildings all crammed together. In the distance, grey-green hills marched toward a mountain ridge, which made Jason a little nervous. He kept glancing at the rocky escarpment, expecting the face of Gaea to appear in its shadows. 
	</p><p>He and Nico were wandering along the esplanade when Jason spotted the guy with wings buying an ice cream bar from a street cart. The vendor lady looked bored as she counted the guy’s change. Tourists navigated around the angel’s huge wings without a second glance, which meant they were hidden by the Mist, or this kind of thing was a common occurrence in Split. Jason wasn’t sure which he preferred. 
	</p><p>Jason nudged Nico. “Are you seeing this?” 
	</p><p>“Yeah,” Nico agreed. “Maybe we should buy some ice cream.” 
	</p><p>As they made their way toward the street cart, Jason worried that the winged dude might be a son of Boreas the North Wind. At his side, the angel carried the same kind of jagged bronze sword the Boreads had, and Jason’s last encounter with them hadn’t gone so well. 
	</p><p>But this guy seemed more chill than chilly. He wore a red tank top, Bermuda shorts, and huarache sandals. His wings were a combination of russet colors, like a bantam rooster or a lazy sunset. He had a deep tan and black hair almost as curly as Leo’s.
</p><p>“He’s not a returned spirit,” Nico murmured. “Or a creature of the Underworld.” 
	</p><p>“No,” Jason agreed. “I doubt they would eat chocolate covered ice cream bars.” 
</p><p>“So what is he?” Nico wondered. 
</p><p>They got within thirty feet, and the winged dude looked directly at them. He smiled, gestured over his shoulder with his ice cream bar, and dissolved into the air. 
</p><p>Jason couldn’t exactly see him, but he’d had enough experience controlling the wind that he could track the angel’s path- a warm wisp of red and gold zipping across the street, spiraling down the sidewalk, and blowing postcards from the carousels in front of tourist shops. The wind headed toward the end of the promenade, where a big fortress like structure loomed.  
</p><p>“I’m betting that’s the palace,” Jason said. “Come on.” 
</p><p>Even after two millennia, Diocleian’s Palace was still impressive. The outer wall was only a pink granite shell, with crumbling columns and arched windows open to the sky, but it was mostly intact, a quarter mile long and seventy or eighty feet tall, dwarfing the modern shops and houses that huddled beneath it. Jason imagined what the palace must have looked like when it was newly built, with Imperial guards walking the ramparts and the golden eagles of Rome glinting on the parapets. 
</p><p>The wind angel- or whatever he was- whisked in and out of pink granite windows, then disappeared on the other side. Jason scanned the palace’s facade for an entrance. The only one he saw was several blocks away, with tourists lined up to buy tickets. No time for that. 
</p><p>“We’ve got to catch him,” Jason said. “Hold on.” 
</p><p>“But-”
</p><p>Jason grabbed Nico and lifted them both into the air. 
</p><p>Nico made a muffled sound of protest as they soared over the walls and into a courtyard where more tourists were milling around, taking pictures. 

</p><p>A little kid did a double take when they landed. Then his eyes glazed over and he shook his head, like he was dismissing a juice-box-induced hallucination. No one else paid them any attention.
</p><p>On the left side of the courtyard stood a line of columns holding up weathered grey arches. On the right side was a white marble building with rows of tall windows. 
</p><p>“The peristyle,” Nico said. “This was the entrance to Diocletian’s private residence.” He scowled at Jason. “And please, I don’t like being touched. Don’t ever grab me again.” 
</p><p>Jason's shoulder blades tensed. He thought he heard the undertone of a threat, like: unless you want to get a Stygian sword up your nose. “Uh, okay. Sorry. How do you know what this place is called?”
</p><p>Nico scanned the atrium. He focused on some steps in the corner, leading down. 
</p><p>“I’ve been here before.” His eyes were as dark as his blade. “With my mother and Bianca. A weekend trip from Venice. I was maybe… six?” 
</p><p>“That was when… the 1930s?”
</p><p>“Thirty-eighty or so,” Nico said absently. “Why do you care? Do you see that winged guy anywhere?” 
</p><p>“No…” Jason was still trying to wrap his mind around Nico’s past.
</p><p>Jason always tried to build a good relationship with the people on his team. He’d learned the hard way that if somebody was going to have your back in a fight, it was better if you found some common ground and trusted each other. But Nico wasn’t easy to figure out. “I just… I can’t imagine how weird that must be, coming from another time.” Jason looked at Nico, but Nico refused to catch his eye. 
</p><p>“No, you can’t.” Nico glared at the stone floor so hard Jason was worried skeletons were going to start popping up. Then Nico took a deep breath and closed his eyes. 
</p><p>“Look… I don’t like talking about it. Honestly, I think Hazel has it worse. She remembers more about when she was young. She had to come back from the dead and adjust to the modern world. Me… Me and Bianca, we were just stuck at the Lotus Hotel. Time passed so quickly. In a weird way, that made the transition easier.” 
</p><p>“Percy told me about that place,” Jason said. “Seventy years, but it only felt like a month?” 
</p><p>Nico clenched his fist until his fingers turned white. “Yeah. I’m sure Percy told you all about me.” 
</p><p>His voice was heavy with bitterness- more than Jason had expected. More than he could understand. He knew that Nico had blamed Percy for getting his sister Bianca killed, but they’d supposedly gotten past that, at least according to Percy. Piper had also mentioned that she thought Nico had a crush on Annabeth. Maybe that was part of it. 
</p><p>Still… Jason didn’t get why Nico pushed people away, why he never spent much time at either camp, why he preferred the dead to the living. He really didn’t get why Nico was on this quest with them if he hated Percy Jackson so much. 
</p><p>Nico’s eyes swept the windows above them. “Roman dead are everywhere here… Lares. Lemures. They’re watching. They’re angry.” 
</p><p>“At us?” Jason’s hand went to his sword, though there wasn’t exactly anything he could do against ghosts he couldn’t see. 
</p><p>“At everything.” Nico pointed to a small stone building on the west end of the courtyard. “That used to be a temple to Jupiter. The Christians changed it to a baptistery. The Roman ghosts don’t like that.” 
</p><p>Jason stared at the dark doorway.
</p><p>He’d never met Jupiter, but he thought of his father as a living person- the guy who had fallen in love with his mom. Of course he knew his dad was immortal, but somehow the full meaning hadn't never really sunk in until now, as he stared at a doorway Romans had walked through, thousands of years ago, to worship his dad. The idea gave Jason a splitting headache. 
</p><p>“And over there…” Nico pointed east to a hexagonal building ringed with free standing columns. “That was the mausoleum of the emperor.”
</p><p>“But his tomb isn’t there anymore,” Jason guessed. 
</p><p>“Not for centuries,” Nico said. “When the empire collapsed, the building was turned into a Christian cathedral.” 
</p><p>Jason swallowed. “So if Diocletian’s ghost is still around here-” 
	</p><p>“He’s probably not happy,” Nico finished. 
</p><p>The wind rustled, pushing leaves and food wrappers across the peristyle. In the corner of his eye, Jason caught a glimpse of movement- a blur of red and gold. 
</p><p>When he turned, a single rust-colored feather was settling on the steps that led down. 
</p><p>“That way,” Jason pointed. “The winged guy. Where do you think those stairs lead?”
</p><p>Nico drew his sword, and Jason discovered that his smile was even more unsettling than his scowl. “Underground,” he said. “My favourite place.” 
----------
	</p><p>Underground was not Jason’s favourite place. 
	</p><p>Ever since his trip beneath Rome with Piper and Percy, fighting those twin giants in the hypogeum under the Colosseum, most of his nightmares were about basements, trapdoors, and large hamster wheels. 
	</p><p>Having Nico along was not exactly reassuring. His Stygian iron blade seemed to make the shadows even gloomier, as if the infernal metal was drawing what little light and heat there was out of the air. 
	</p><p>They crept through a vast cellar with thick support columns holding up a vaulted ceiling. The limestone blocks were so old, they had fused together in some places from centuries of moisture, making the place almost look like a naturally formed cave. 
	</p><p>None of the tourists had ventured down here. Obviously, they were smarter than demigods. 
	</p><p>Jason drew his gladius. They made their way under the low archways, their steps echoing on the stone floor. Barred windows lined the top of one wall, facing the street level, but that just made the cellar feel more claustrophobic. The shafts of sunlight looked like slanted prison bars, swirling with ancient dust. 
	</p><p>Jason passed a support beam, looked to his left, and almost had a heart attack. Staring right at him was a marble bust of Diocletian, his limestone face glowering with disapproval. 
	</p><p>Jason steadied his breathing. This seemed like a good place to leave the note he’s written for Reyna, telling her of their route to Epirus. It was away from the crowds, but he trusted Reyna would find it. She had the instincts of a hunter. He slipped the note between the bust and its pedestal, and stepped back. 
	</p><p>Diocletian’s marble eyes made him jumpy. Jason couldn’t help thinking of Terminus, the talking statue-god back at New Rome. He hoped Diocletian didn’t tell him his hair was too long or his pants were too short or suddenly burst into song about the wonderful rules of New Rome. 
	</p><p>“Hello!” 
	</p><p>Before Jason could register that the voice had come from somewhere else, he sliced off the emperor’s head. The bust toppled and shattered against the floor. 
	</p><p>“That wasn’t very nice,” said the voice from behind him. 
	</p><p>Jason turned. The winged man from the ice cream stand was leaning against a nearby column, casually tossing a bronze hoop in the air. At his feet sat a wicker picnic basket full of fruit. 
	</p><p>“I mean,” the man said. “What did Diocletian ever do to you?”
	</p><p>The air swirled around Jason’s feet. The shards of limestone gathered into a miniature tornado, spiraled back to the pedestal, and reassembled into a complete bust, the note still tucked underneath. 
	</p><p>“Uh-” Jason lowered his sword. “It was an accident. You startled me.” 
	</p><p>The winged dude chuckled. “Jason Grace, the West Wind has been called many things… warm, gentle, life giving, devilishly handsome. But I have never been called startling. I leave that crass behaviour to my gusty brethren in the north,”
	</p><p>Nico inched backward. “The West Wind? You mean you’re-”
	</p><p>“Favonius,” Jason realised. “God of the West Wind.” 
	</p><p>Favonius smiled and bowed, obviously pleased to be recognised. “You can call me by my Roman name, certainly, or Zephyros, if you’re Greek/ I’m not hung up about it.” 
	</p><p>Nico looked pretty hung up about it. “Why aren’t your Greek and Roman sides in conflict, like the other gods? You should be incapacitated.” 
	</p><p>“Oh, I have the occasional headache.” Favonius shrugged. “Some morning I’ll wake up in a Greek chiton when I’m sure I went to sleep in my SPQR pajamas. But mostly the war doesn’t bother me. I’m a minor god, you know- never really been much in the limelight. The to-and-fro battles among you demigods don’t affect me greatly.” 
	</p><p>“So…” Jason still wasn’t quite sure whether to sheathe his sword. “What are you doing here?” 
	</p><p>“Several things!” Favonius said. “Hanging out with my basket of fruit. I always carry a basket of fruit. Would you like a pear, Jason? If I remember, those are your favourite!” 
	</p><p>“I’m good. Thanks.” Jason had given up wondering how random gods he had never met knew random information about him years ago. 
	</p><p>“Let’s see… earlier I was eating ice cream. Right now I’m tossing this quoit ring.” Favonius spun the bronze hoop on his index finger. 
	</p><p>Jason had no idea what a quoit was, but he tried to keep the god focused. “I mean why did you appear to us? Why did you lead us to this cellar?”
	</p><p>“Oh!” Favonius nodded. “The sarcophagus of Diocletian. Yes. This was its final resting place. The Christians moved it out of the mausoleum. Then some barbarians destroyed the coffin. I just wanted to show you-” he spread his hands sadly- “That what you’re looking for isn’t here. My master has taken it.” 
	</p><p>“Your master?” Jason had a flashback to a floating palace above Pikes Peak in Colorado, where he’d visited (and barely survived) the studio of a crazy weatherman who claimed he was the god of all the winds. “Please tell me your master isn’t Aeolus.” 
	</p><p>“That airhead?” Favonius snorted. “No, of course not.” 
	</p><p>“He means Eros.” Nico’s voice turned edgy. “Cupid, in Latin.” 
	</p><p>Favonius smiled. “Very good, Nico di Angelo. I’m glad to see you again, by the way. It’s been a long time.” 
	</p><p>Nico knit his eyebrows. “I’ve never met you.” 
	</p><p>“You’ve never seen me,” the god corrected. “But I’ve been watching you. When you came here as a small boy, and several times since. I knew eventually you would return to look upon my master’s face.”
	</p><p>Nico turned even paler than usual. His eyes darted around the cavernous room as if he was starting to feel claustrophobic as well. 
	</p><p>“Nico?” Jason asked. “What’s he talking about?” 
	</p><p>“I don’t know. Nothing.”
	</p><p>“Nothing?” Favonius cried. “The one you care for most… who’s saved you more times than you can count, been so patient with you, just a moment away. For years you have been hiding… Still you will not allow the truth?” 
	</p><p>Suddenly Jason felt like he was eavesdropping. 
	</p><p>The one you care for most.
	</p><p>He remembered what Piper had told him about Nico’s crush on Annabeth. Apparently Nico’s feelings went way deeper than a simple crush. 
	</p><p>“We’ve only come for Diocletian’s scepter,” Nico said, clearly anxious to change the subject. “Where is it?” 
	</p><p>“Ah…” Favonius nodded sadly. “You thought it would be as easy as facing Diocletian’s ghost? I’m afraid not, Nico. Your trials will be much more difficult. You know, long before this was Diocletian’s Palace, it was the gateway to my master’s court. I’ve dwelt here for eons, bringing those who sought love into the presence of Cupid.” 
	</p><p>Jason didn’t like the mention of difficult trials. He didn’t trust this weird god with the hoop and the wings and the basket of fruit. But an old story surfaced in his mind- something he’d heard at Camp Jupiter. “Like Psyche, Cupid’s wife. You carried her to his palace.” 
	</p><p>Favonius’s eyes twinkled.  “Very good, Jason Grace. From this exact spot, I carried Psyche on the winds and brought her to the chambers of my master. In fact, that is why Diocletian built his palace here. This place has always been graced by the gentle West Wind.” He spread his arms. “It is a spot of tranquility and love in a turbulent world. When Diocletian’s Palace was ransacked-” 
	</p><p>“You took the scepter,” Jason guessed. 
	</p><p>“For safekeeping,” Favonius agreed. “It is one of Cupid’s many treasures, a reminder of better times. If you want it…” Favonius turned to Nico. “You must face the god of love.” 
	</p><p>Nico stared at the sunlight coming through the windows, as if wishing he could escape through those narrow openings. 
	</p><p>Jason wasn’t sure what Favonius wanted, but if facing the god of love meant forcing Nico into some sort of confession about which girl he liked, that didn’t seem so bad. 
	</p><p>“Nico, you can do this,” Jason said. “It might be embarrassing, but it’s for the scepter.” 
	Nico didn’t look convinced. In fact, he looked like he was going to be sick. But he squared his shoulders and nodded. “You’re right. I-I’m not afraid of a love god.” 
	</p><p>Favonius beamed. “Excellent! Would you like a snack before you go?” He plucked a green apple from his basket and frowned at it. “Oh, bluster. I keep forgetting my symbol is a basket of unripe fruit. Why doesn’t the spring wind get more credit? Summer has all the fun.” 
	</p><p>“That’s okay,” Nico said quickly. “Just take us to Cupid.” 
	</p><p>Favonius spun the hoop on his finger, and Jason’s body dissolved into air.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0022"><h2>22. Jason</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Jason had ridden the wind many times. Being the wind was totally different.</p><p>He felt out of control, his thoughts scattered, no boundaries between his body and the rest of the world. He wondered if this was how monsters felt when they were defeated- bursting into dust, helpless and formless. 
	</p><p>Jason could sense Nico’s presence nearby. The West Wind carried them into the sky above Split. Together, they raced over the hills, past Roman aqueducts and vineyards. As they approached the mountains, Jason saw the ruins of a Roman town spread out below- crumbling walls, square foundations, cracked roads- all overgrown with grass so it looked like a giant, mossy chess board. 
	</p><p>Favonius set them down in the middle of the ruins, next to a broken column the size of a redwood. 
	</p><p>Jason’s body reformed. For a moment, it felt even worse than being the wind, like he’d suddenly been wrapped in a lead overcoat. 
	</p><p>“Yes, mortal bodies are terribly bulky,” Favonius said, as if reading his thoughts. The wind god settled on a nearby wall with his basket of fruit and flowers, and spread his russet wings in the sun. “Honestly, I don’t know how you stand it, day in and day out.” 
	</p><p>Jason scanned their surroundings. The town must have been huge once. He could make out the shells of temples and bathhouses, a half-buried amphitheatre, and empty pedestals that must have once held statues. Rows of columns wove in and out of the hillside like stone thread through a green cloth. 
	</p><p>Some areas looked like they’d just been excavated, but most of the city just seemed abandoned, as if it had been left to the elements for the last two thousand years. 
	</p><p>“Welcome to Salona,” Favonius said. “Capital of Dalmatia! Birthplace of Diocletian! But before that, long before that, it was the home of Cupid.” 
	</p><p>The name echoed, as if voices were whispering it through the ruins. 
	</p><p>Something about this place seemed even creepier than the palace basement in Split. Jason had never thought much about Cupid. He’d certainly never thought of Cupid as scary. Even for Roman demigods, the name conjured up an image of a silly winged baby with a toy bow and arrow, flying around in his diapers on Valentine’s Day. 
	</p><p>“Oh, he’s not like that,” said Favonius.” 
	</p><p>Jason flinched. “You can read my mind?” 
	</p><p>“I don’t need to,” he answered vaguely. He tossed his bronze hoop in the air. “Everyone has the wrong impression of Cupid… Until they meet him.” Favonius looked over to Jason, and winked. “What you’re thinking of is called a putto.” 
	</p><p>Jason turned away, unsettled by the West Wind.
	</p><p>Nico had braced himself against a column, his legs trembling visibly. 
	</p><p>“Hey, man…” Jason stepped toward him, but Nico waved him off. 
	</p><p>At Nico’s feet, the grass turned brown and wilted. The dead patch spread outward, as if poison were seeping from the soles of his shoes. 
	</p><p>“Ah…” Favonius nodded sympathetically. “I don’t blame you for being nervous, Nico di Angelo. Do you know how I ended up serving Cupid?” 
	</p><p>“I don’t serve anyone,” Nico muttered. “Especially not Cupid.” 
	</p><p>Favonius continued as if he hadn’t heard. He plucked a flower from his basket and stared at it, twirling it carefully between his fingers. For the first time, Jason noticed them. They were all the same flower, just varying colors. Pink, purple, white, orange, yellow… They blended almost seamlessly with the flowers that Jason wouldn’t have seen them if he wasn’t looking for them. “I fell in love with a mortal name Hyacinthus,” Favonius said. “He was quite extraordinary.” 
	</p><p>“He…?” Jason’s brain was still fuzzy from his wind trip, so it took him a second to process that. “Oh…”
	</p><p>Favonius snapped his eyes up towards Jason,, and for a split second, the gentle West Wind was completely gone. It was the first time Jason felt truly intimidated by the god, rather than just cautious. “Yes, Jason Grace.” Favonius arched an eyebrow. “I fell in love with a dude. Does that shock you?” 
	</p><p>Honestly, Jason wasn’t sure. He tried not to think about the details of godly love lives, no matter who they fell in love with. After all, his dad Jupiter wasn’t exactly the paragon of good behavior. Compared to some of the Olympian love scandals he’d heard about, the West Wind falling in love with a mortal guy didn’t seem very shocking. “I guess not. So… Cupid struck you with his arrow, and you fell in love.”
	</p><p>Favonius snorted. “You make it sound so simple. Alas, love is never simple. You should know that, Jason. You see, the god Apollo also liked Ayacinthus. He claimed they were just friends. I don’t know. But one day I came across them together, playing a game of quoits-”
	</p><p>There was that weird word again. “Quoits?”
	</p><p>“A game with those hoops,” Nico explained, though his voice was brittle. “Like horseshoes. We have it at camp. You never bothered to play?” 
	</p><p>“I was a little busy helping Leo build a warship,” Jason defended. 
	</p><p>“At any rate,” Favonius continued, “I was jealous. Instead of confronting them and finding out the truth, I shifted the wind and sent a heavy metal ring right at Hyacinthus’ head and… well.” The wind god sighed and looked back down at the purple flower in his hand. “As Hyacinthus died, Apollo turned him into a flower, the hyacinth, to preserve his beauty forever. I’m sure Apollo would have taken horrible vengeance on me, but Cupid offered me his protection. I’d done a terrible thing, but I’d been driven mad by love, so he spared me, on the condition that I work for him forever.” 
	</p><p>CUPID.
	</p><p>The name echoed through the ruins again. 
	</p><p>“That would be my cue.” Favonius stood up straight. “Think long and hard about how you proceed, Nico di Angelo. You cannot lie to Cupid. If you let your anger rule you… well, your fate will be even sadder than mine.” 
	</p><p>Jason felt like his brain was turning back into wind. He didn’t understand what Favonius was talking about, or why Nico seemed so shaken, but he had no time to think about it. The wind god disappeared in a swirl of red and gold, leaving behind only the purple hyacinth flower he had been holding. Jason moved towards it and picked it up, twirling it in his own fingers. He figured there must have been a reason Favonius left the flower behind. Gods didn’t generally leave behind tokens without reason. 
</p><p>The summer air suddenly felt oppressive. The ground shook, and Jason shoved the flower into his pocket as he and Nico drew their swords. 
</p>
<p>----------
	</p><p>‘So.’
	</p><p>The voice rushed past Jason’s ear like a bullet. When he turned, no one was there. 
	</p><p>‘You come to claim the scepter.’
	</p><p>Nico stood at his back, and for once, Jason was glad to have the guy’s company. 
	</p><p>“Cupid,” Jason called, “where are you?”
	</p><p>The voice laughed. It definitely didn’t sound like a cute baby angel’s. It sounded deep and rich, but also threatening- like a tremor before a major earthquake. 
	</p><p>‘Where you least expect me,’ Cupid answered. ‘As Love always is.’ 
	</p><p>Something slammed into Jason and hurled him across the street. He toppled down a set of steps and sprawled on the floor of an excavated Roman basement. 
	</p><p>‘I would think you’d know better, Jason Grace.’ Cupid’s voice whirled around him. ‘You’re with you’re true love, after all. Or do you still doubt yourself?’
	</p><p>Nico scrambled down the steps. “You okay?” 
	</p><p>Jason accepted his hand and got to his feet. “Yeah. Just sucker punched.”
	</p><p>‘Oh, did you expect me to play fair?’ Cupid laughed. ‘I am the god of love. I am never fair.’ 
	</p><p>This time, Jason’s senses were on high alert. He felt the air ripple just as an arrow materialized, racing towards Nico’s chest. 
	</p><p>Jason intercepted it with his sword and deflected it sideways. The arrow exploded against the nearest wll, peppering them with limestone shrapnel. 
	</p><p>They ran up the steps. Jason pulled Nico to one side as another gust of wind toppled a column that would have crushed him flat. 
	</p><p>“Is this guy Love or Death?” Jason growled. 
	</p><p>‘Ask your friends,’ Cupid said. ‘Frank, Hazel, and Percy met my counterpart, Thanatos. We are not so different. Except Death is sometimes kinder.’
	</p><p>“We just want the scepter!” Nico shouted. “We’re trying to stop Gaea. Are you on the gods’ side or not?” 
	</p><p>A second arrow hit the ground between Nico’s feet and glowed white-hot. Nico stumbled back as the arrow burst into a geyser of flame. 
	</p><p>‘Love is on every side,’ Cupid said. ‘And no one’s side. Don’t ask what Love can do for you.’ 
	</p><p>“Great,” Jason said. “Now he’s spouting greeting card messages.” 
	</p><p>Movement behind him: Jason spun, slicing his sword through the air. His blade bit into something solid. He heard a grunt and he swung again, but the invisible god was gone. On the paving stones, a trail of gold ichor shimmered- the blood of the gods. 
	</p><p>‘Very good, Jason,’ Cupid said. ‘At least you can sense my presence. Even a glancing hit at true love is more than most heros manage.’
	</p><p>“So now I get the scepter?” Jason asked.
	</p><p>Cupid laughed. ‘Unfortunately, you could not wield it. Only a child of the Underworld can summon the dead legions. And only an officer of Rome can lead them.’ 
	</p><p>“But…” Jason wavered. He was an officer. He was praetor. Then he remembered all his second thoughts about where he belonged. In New Rome, he’d offered to give up his position to Percy Jackson. Did that make him unworthy to lead a legion of Roman ghosts? 
	</p><p>He decided that, like all issues demigods faced, he could deal with that when the time came. 
	</p><p>“Just leave that to us,” he said. “Nico can summon-” 
	</p><p>The third arrow zipped by Jason’s shoulder. He couldn’t stop it in time. Nico gasped as it sunk into his sword arm. 
	</p><p>“Nico!”
	</p><p>The son of Hades stumbled. The arrow dissolved, leaving no blood and no visible wound, but Nico’s face was tight with rage and pain. 
	</p><p>“Enough games!” Nico shouted. “Show yourself!” 
	</p><p>‘It is a costly thing,’ Cupid said, ‘looking on the true face of Love.’
	</p><p>Another column toppled. Jason scrambled out of its way. 
	</p><p>‘My wife Psyche learned that lesson,’ Cupid said. ‘She was brought here eons ago, when this was the site of my palace. We met only in the dark. She was warned never to look upon me, and yet she could not stand the mystery. She feared I was a monster. One night, she lit a candle, and beheld my face as I slept.’
	</p><p>“Were you that ugly?” Jason thought he had zeroed in on Cupid’s voice- at the edge of the amphitheatre about twenty yards away- but he wanted to make sure. 
	</p><p>The god laughed. ‘I was too handsome, I’m afraid. A mortal cannot gaze upon the true appearance of a god without suffering consequences. My mother, Aphrodite, cursed Psyche for her distrust. My poor lover was tormented, forced into exile, given horrible tasks to prove her worth. She was even sent to the underworld to show her dedication. She earned her way back to my side, but she suffered greatly.’
	</p><p>Now I’ve got you, Jason thought. 
	</p><p>He thrust his sword in the sky and thunder shook the valley. Lightning blasted a crater where the voice had been speaking. 
	</p><p>Silence. Jason was just thinking, Dang, it actually worked, when an invisible force knocked him to the ground. His sword skittered across the pavement. 
	</p><p>‘A good try,’ Cupid said, his voice already distant. ‘But Love cannot be pinned down so easily.’ 
	</p><p>Next to him, a wall collapsed. Jason barely managed to roll aside. 
	</p><p>“Stop it!” Nico yelled. “It’s me you want. Leave him alone!” 
	</p><p>Jason’s ears rang. He was dizzy from getting smacked around. His mouth tasted like metal, the way it always did after he summoned lightning, and limestone dust, which was not a pleasant combination, he discovered. He didn’t understand why Nico would think of himself as the main target, but Cupid seemed to agree.
	</p><p>‘Poor Nico di Angelo.’ The god’s voice was tinged with disappointment. ‘Do you know what you want, much less what I want? My beloved Psyche risked everything in the name of Love. It was the only way to atone for her lack of faith. And you- what have you risked in my name?’ 
	</p><p>“I’ve been to Tartarus and back,” Nico snarled. “You don’t scare me.” 
	</p><p>‘I scare you very, very much. Face me. Be honest.’
	</p><p>Jason pulled himself up.
	</p><p>All around Nico, the ground shifted. The grass withered, and the stones cracked as if something was moving in the earth beneath, trying to push its way through. 
	</p><p>“Give us Diocletian’s scepter,” Nico said. “We don’t have time for games.” 
	</p><p>‘Games?’ Cupid struck, sending Nico sideways into a granite pedestal. ‘Love is no game! It is no flowery softness! It is hard work- a quest that never ends. It demands everything from you- especially the truth. Only then does it yield reward.’
	</p><p>Jason retrieved his sword. If this invisible guy was Love, Jason was beginning to think that Love was overrated. He liked Piper’s version better- considerate, kind, and beautiful. Aphrodite he could understand. Cupid seemed more like a thug, an enforcer. 
	</p><p>“Nico,” he called, “what does this guy want from you?”
	</p><p>‘Tell him, Nico di Angelo,’ Cupid said. ‘Tell him you are a coward, afraid of yourself and your feelings. Tell him the real reason you ran from Camp Half-Blood, and why you are always alone.’
	</p><p>Nico let loose a guttural scream. The ground at his feet split open and skeletons crawled forth- dead Romans with missing hands and caved in skulls, cracked ribs and jaws unhinged. Some were dressed in the remnants of togas. Others had glinting pieces of armor hanging off their chests.
	</p><p>‘Will you hide among the dead, as you always do?’ Cupid taunted. 
	</p><p>Waves of darkness rolled off the son of Hades. When they hit Jason, he almost lost consciousness- overwhelmed by hatred and fear and shame…
	</p><p>Images flashed through his mind. He saw Nico and his sister on a snowy cliff in Maine, Percy Jackson protecting them from the manticore. Percy’s sword gleamed in the dark. He’d been the first demigod Nico had ever seen in action. 
	</p><p>Later, at Camp Half-Blood, Percy took Nico by the arm, promising to keep his sister Bianca safe. Nico believed him. Nico looked into his sea-green eyes and thought, How can he possibly fail? This is a real hero. He was Nico’s favourite game, Mythomagic, brought to life.
	</p><p>Jason saw the moment when Percy returned and told Nico that Bianca was dead. Nico had screamed and called him a liar. He’d felt betrayed, but still… when the skeleton warriors attacked, he couldn’t let them harm Percy. Nico had called on the earth to swallow them up, and then he’d run away- terrified of his own powers, his own emotions. 
	</p><p>Jason saw a dozen more scenes like this from Nico’s point of view. He \saw Percy the way Nico saw him… And it left him stunned, unable to move or speak.
	</p><p>Meanwhile, Nico’s Roman skeletons surged forward and grappled with something invisible. The god struggled, flinging the dead aside, breaking off ribs and skulls, but the skeletons kept coming, pinning the god’s arms. 
	</p><p>‘Interesting!’ Cupid said. ‘Do you have the strength, after all?’
	</p><p>“I left Camp Half-Blood because of love,” Nico said. “Annabeth… She-”
	</p><p>‘Still hiding,’ Cupid said, smashing another skeleton to pieces. ‘You do not have the strength.’
	</p><p>“Nico,” Jason managed to say, “it’s okay. I get it.” 
	</p><p>Nico glanced over, pain and misery washing across his face. 
	</p><p>“No, you don’t,” he said. “There’s no way you can understand.” 
	</p><p>‘And so you run away again,’ Cupid chided. ‘From your friends, from yourself.’
	</p><p>“I don’t have friends!” Nico yelled. “I left Camp Half-Blood because I don’t belong! I’ll never belong!” 
	</p><p>The skeletons had Cupid pinned now, but the invisible god laughed so cruelly that Jason wanted to summon another bolt of lightning. Unfortunately, he doubted he had the strength. 
	</p><p>“Leave him along, Cupid,” Jason croaked. “This isn’t…” 
	</p><p>His voice failed. He wanted to say it wasn’t Cupid’s business, but he realised this was exactly the stupid Hallmark god’s business. Something Favonius said kept buzzing in his ears: Are you shocked?
	</p><p>The story of Psyche finally made sense to him- why a mortal girl would be so afraid. Why she would risk breaking the rules to look the god of love in the face, because she feared he might be a monster. 
	</p><p>Psyche had been right. Cupid was a monster. Love was the most savage monster of all. 
	</p><p>Nico’s voice was like broken glass. “I-I’m not in love with Annabeth.”
	</p><p>“You’re jealous of her,” Jason said. “That’s why you don’t want to be around her. Especially why you don’t want to be around… him. It makes total sense.” 
	</p><p>All the fight and denial seemed to go out of Nico at once. The darkness subsided. The Roman dead collapsed into bones and crumbled into dust. 
	</p><p>“I hated myself,” Nico said. “I hated Percy Jackson. I hated that I… That I couldn’t hate him.” 
	</p><p>Cupid became visible- a lean, muscular young man with snowy white wings, straight black hair, a simple white frock, and jeans. The bow and quiver slung over his shoulder were no toys- they were weapons of war. His eyes were as red a blood, as if every Valentine in the world had been squeezed dry, distilled into one poisonous mixture. His face was handsome, but also harsh- as difficult to look at as a spotlight. He watched Nico with satisfaction, as if he’d identified the exact spot for his next arrow to make a clean kill. Jason figured Nico might find that more favorable. 
	</p><p>“I have a crush on Percy,” Nico spat. “That’s the truth. That’s the big secret.”
	</p><p>He glared at Cupid. “Happy now?” 
	</p><p>For the first time, Cupid’s gaze seemed sympathetic. “Oh, I wouldn’t say Love always makes you happy.” His voice sounded smaller, more human. “Sometimes it makes you incredibly sad. But at least you’ve faced it now.” Jason thought he saw the god’s gaze flicker to him. “That’s the only way to conquer me.” 
	</p><p>Cupid dissolved into the wind. 
	</p><p>On the ground where he’d stood lay an ivory staff three feet long, topped with a dark globe of polished marble about the size of a baseball, nestled on the backs of three gold Roman eagles. The scepter of Diocletian. 
	</p><p>Nico knelt and picked it up. He regarded Jason, as if waiting for an attack. “If the others found out-”
	</p><p>“If the others found out,” Jason said, “you’d have that many more people to back you up, and to unleash the fury of the gods on anybody who gives you trouble.” 
	</p><p>Nico scowled. Jason still felt the resentment and anger rippling off him. 
	</p><p>“But it’s your call,” Jason added. “Your decision to share or not. I can only tell you-”
	</p><p>“I’m not sharing anything. Nobody needs to know.” His voice was harsh, but he turned too quick, and Jason thought he saw tears starting to spring up in Nico’s eyes. Jason couldn’t imagine what it had been like for Nico, keeping a secret that would have been unthinkable to share in the 1940s, denying who he was, feeling completely alone- even more isolated than other demigods. 
	</p><p>“Nico,” he said gently, “I’ve seen a lot of brave things. But what you just did? That was maybe the bravest.” 
	</p><p>Nico looked up uncertainly. “We should get back to the ship.” 
	</p><p>“Yeah. I can fly us-”
	</p><p>“No,” Nico announced. “This time, we’re shadow-traveling. I’ve had enough of the winds for a while.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0023"><h2>23. Jason</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Jason discovered he hated shadow-travel just as much as he hated being the wind.</p><p>It gave him a very similar feeling- like his atoms were being pulled apart and dissolving until he remained just a fuzzy outline of himself. Only, shadow-travel was more disorienting. At least as the wind, he could see where they were and sense where they were going. He had none of that in shadow-travel. He felt his body dissolve behind one of the columns in Cupid’s palace, and reform in a narrow alleyway, somewhere he was hoping was still Italy. 
	</p>
<p>Jason’s stomach flipped as his body reformed. Nico was staring at Jason, and a barely noticeable smirk was on his lips, like he was pleased with himself for throwing Jason off so badly. Jason guessed it was payback for flying him up through Diocletian’s palace windows. 
	</p>
<p>They slipped out of the alley, and Jason recognised the esplanade where he and Nico had first seen the West Wind. No one gave them a passing glance as they wandered into mass of citizens and tourists. 
	</p>
<p>With the Argo II within view, Jason allowed himself a moment to relax. Think. He hadn’t had much time to process much of anything since the quest had started.
	</p>
<p>But his mind kept tugging back to Nico’s confession at Cupid’s palace. Jason knew that it didn’t matter. It didn’t change Nico- if anything, it explained a lot. But he couldn’t think of any times he had interacted with someone who wasn’t straight. He didn’t know how to act, or if something he might say could offend Nico. He was already on such thin ice with the guy, that was the last thing he wanted. 
</p>
<p>As he looked around, Jason became more aware of the people around him. A pair of girls holding hands and laughing as they walked. Two guys sharing ice cream kisses. A few people who Jason couldn’t identify as male or female. 
</p>
<p>He frowned. Had there been people like that in New Rome? Camp Half-Blood? Had there been couples that he had never noticed? 
</p>
<p>Was he really that caught up in himself? 
</p>
<p>“We’re here,” Nico said, snapping Jason out of his thoughts. Jason looked up. Sure enough, there was the Argo II, looming above them. The gangplank was lowered as the ship was docked, which made Jason grateful. He really hated climbing that sixty foot rope ladder. 
</p>
<p>Nico swept his arm in front of him, gesturing Jason to go first. Jason wondered if he was just trying to buy himself more time. Regardless, Jason boarded, his hand still tucked into his pocket, gently clutching the hyacinth. 
</p>
<p>----------
	</p>
<p>“Jason!” Piper launched herself at Jason, nearly knocking him over. He let out a surprised gasp that morphed into a laugh as he clutched his girlfriend. She buried her nose in his neck, and Jason frowned. 
	</p>
<p>“Something wrong, Pipes?” 
	</p>
<p>She pulled away and gently pounded her fist on his chest. “You were gone much longer than we thought you would be! Annabeth was getting ready to organise a search party!” 
	</p>
<p>Jason laughed. “We weren’t gone that long.”
	</p>
<p>Piper’s eyes softened. “I know. But… We can’t waste any time. We’re already running on a tight schedule.” 
	</p>
<p>Jason’s laugh died out. “Yeah. I know. Nico-” He froze and looked behind him. Nico was glaring at him, but behind the fire there was fear, and betrayal. “Nico got nostalgic for home. We lost track of time.” 
	</p>
<p>Piper nodded. She looked behind Jason, to Nico. “You found the scepter?”
	</p>
<p>Nico nodded mutely. One hand was wrapped tightly around the scepter, the other buried deep into his pocket like he was trying to disappear in on himself. 
	</p>
<p>“Yeah,” Jason said. “It was exactly where we thought it would be.” Jason’s stomach crawled with guilt. He hated lying, especially to Piper. Hadn’t Cupid just said that relationships could only flourish with truth? 
	</p>
<p>But Nico had looked so small in Cupid’s palace, so certain that Jason was going to turn away from him. He had looked so full of fear and hurt when Jason had slipped up. And as much as Jason loved Piper, he couldn’t give away Nico’s secret. Not when Cupid had done that very thing. Not when the wound was so fresh. 
	</p>
<p>Besides, there was no way that Jason was going to listen to Cupoid about relationship advice, not after today. 
	</p>
<p>Piper pressed a soft kiss to the corner of Jason’s lips. “You should go rest up before you have to take the night shift.” She glanced behind Jason to Nico. “You both look exhausted.” 
	</p>
<p>Piper playfully shoved Jason in the direction of the cabins, leaving him no room to argue. 
	</p>
<p>Jason knew she was right. If he was going to be any effective on guard tonight, he needed to get some sleep. He had already fallen asleep on watch once, and it wasn’t exactly an experience he wanted to relive. 
	</p>
<p>But as he laid on his bed, Jason couldn’t get his mind to calm down. His thoughts were rushing at a million miles an hour, too fast for him to grasp one and focus on it. Too fast for him to even really know what he was thinking about. 
	</p>
<p>All he knew was that something felt… wrong. 
	</p>
<p>It wasn’t the same kind of wrong sensation he got when a storm was approaching or Gaea was toying with them or Hedge had made his way into the armory (they were lucky that incident only ended with one dead whale (Percy had given it a proper funeral, and Piper had cried for approximately two hours afterwards). No, it was more like when he knew he had forgotten something, but he wasn’t sure what, or when Dakota and Gwen had snuck into the praetor’s residence and moved everything five inches to the left. 
	</p>
<p>It was a something wrong that was so subtle, so barely noticeable, but hit him like a brick when he realised just what it was. 
	</p>
<p>Jason sat up on his bed, legs crossed in front of him, and pulled the flower out of his pocket. Despite the tight space, the hyacinth wasn’t crumpled or crushed. It looked just as lively and pristine as when he had picked it up from Cupid’s palace.
	</p>
<p>Looking at the flower, he remembered the West Wind’s story. It was horrible, to kill your own love because of jealousy. But Jason couldn’t say he couldn’t completely understand. 
	</p>
<p>He remembered when he first met Piper, at the Grand Canyon. How gorgeous he thought she was. How much he despised Dylan for partnering up with her for the assignment. He hadn’t thought twice before trying to kill Dylan when he turned out to be a venti. 
	</p>
<p>Jason had tried so hard to avoid the topic of their relationship as he regained his memory. He didn’t want to hurt Piper, he didn’t want to lead her on if he had someone else waiting for him. In a way, Jason could understand why Favonius might want to take the easy, if painful, way out. 
	</p>
<p>Jason’s jealousy had never much been geared towards his relationship with Piper, though. Mainly, Jason was jealous of his teammates. He always felt like everyone looked up to him as the son of Jupiter, and that he couldn’t quite live up to their expectations the ways that others could. Medea had used that jealousy, that feeling of inferiority that he had always harbored, against him. He had almost killed Leo because of it. In Kansas, he and Percy had been forced to fight each other by the eidolons. For weeks after the fight, Jason had felt weak for being unable to beat Percy, for being unable to hold out against Piper’s charmspeak. 
</p>
<p>That was the jealousy that was the most dangerous to Jason.
</p>
<p>Jason had that feeling. His brain connected the dots, as to what was wrong. He had remembered what he'd forgotten. He’d noticed everything was moved left. He was hit in the head with a brick.
</p>
<p>Percy. That was it. 
</p>
<p>When he had seen Nico’s life through his eyes, he’d seen Percy the way Nico had seen him. 
</p>
<p>And he hadn’t minded.
</p>
<p>Jason pushed the thought back again. No, that couldn’t be it. He had just been seeing Percy through Nico’s eyes. With Nico’s attraction. 
</p>
<p>He still very much liked Piper. 
</p>
<p>When she had run up to greet him, he had felt a jolt in his pulse. He felt a tingle run through his body when she had pressed her lips to the corner of his mouth. </p>
<p>Her cinnamon shampoo had smelled like home. 
</p>
<p>No guy had ever had an effect like that on Jason. 
</p>
<p>But the thought persisted. 
</p>
<p>Through his mind flashed images from the ordeal at Cupid’s palace. Nico’s look of pain as he had been shot with Cupid’s arrow in the shoulder, and how Jason had wanted to never see that pain again. How quickly Nico had rushed to his side to help when Cupid had knocked Jason across the palace. How Nico had given up his biggest secret, the most dangerous weapon that could be used against him, to keep the god’s attention away from Jason. 
</p>
<p>His stomach fluttered. 
</p>
<p>All his life, Jason had been expected to be the strong one. The one to protect, and give. To have had someone else do that for him… 
</p>
<p>The feeling of wrongness grew and curled into a giant knot in Jason’s stomach. 
</p>
<p>Jason pushed himself off his bed. There was no way he would be able to get to sleep now. His mind was too jumbled.
</p>
<p>Maybe a walk would help his brain relax. 
</p>
<p>Jason shoved the hyacinth flower back into his pocket and opened his cabin door, allowing his legs to carry him aimlessly. The majority of the crew was on deck or in their own cabins, so he didn’t run into anyone. 
</p>
<p>Jason had been so busy fighting for his life, he hadn’t really gotten much of a chance to admire the ship. It was really beautiful. Entirely celestial bronze to guard against monster attacks, sixty oars on either side to aid with sea travel or flying. Eight cabins personalized to the inhabitant. A screen that showed real time footage of Camp Half-Blood. And, of course, the stables with the opening floor that had been designed for pegasi. But it was always empty. 
</p>
<p>Except, when Jason wandered in, it wasn’t empty. He didn’t notice him until after he had reached the bottom of the stairs and was in the stable area, but there he was. Nico di Angelo. Sulking in the corner of the stables, almost invisible in the shadows.
</p>
<p>Jason wondered if it was a coincidence that he had ended up here. 
</p>
<p>As Jason moved further into the stables, Nico didn’t move, as if hoping that if he stayed perfectly still, Jason might not see him and would go away. Instead, Jason sat next to him. Nico scrunched up his nose and Jason and glared, but stayed silent. 
</p>
<p>“Hi,” Jason offered meekly. Nico didn’t respond. Jason cleared his throat and looked down at his lap. “I, uh… Just wanted to say sorry. Y’know. For almost… Telling Piper.” 
</p>
<p>Jason looked up at Nico. His face hadn’t changed. Jason winced slightly. He had expected Nico to be mad at him, but he had hoped…
</p>
<p>Nico sighed and slumped against the wall. “It’s… whatever, I guess,” he said. 
</p>
<p>There was a stiff silence around them. Jason chewed nervously on his top lip, feeling his scar with his tongue. There was something reassuring about that. That, despite his racing mind, he was still Jason. He hadn’t changed. 
</p>
<p>“You know…” he started hesitantly, “Piper’s mom is Aphrodite. She would get it. She wouldn’t-”
</p>
<p>“No,” Nico cut him off. 
</p>
<p>“Why not?”
</p>
<p>The silence returned around them, more tense and stifling. Then Nico let out a soft sigh. “I grew up during World War II.” Jason furrowed his brow. He knew that. He didn’t know what Nico was telling him that. 
</p>
<p>“I remember,” Nico continued, “seeing one of our neighbors in Italy forced out of his home, onto the street, by soldiers. Mamma tried to keep Bi and I from watching what was going on, but… I didn’t understand. I snuck upstairs and watched out the window.” Nico’s face became pained. “A crowd formed quickly. Only one man tried to stop the soldiers. Everyone else just… watched. I was one of them. There on the street, a soldier shot the man in broad daylight through the head. He had no chance of surviving.”
</p>
<p>Nico twisted the skull ring on his finger absently. “The man who tried to stop the soldiers was a friend of Mamma’s. After… after that day, he came over once a week for tea or dinner, or just to talk. I overheard a conversation he had with Mamma, and I learned that the man who had been shot was his lover.” His expression became bitter. “He was shot by those soldiers just because of his sexuality. To be made a public example of.” There was a fire in Nico’s voice that surprised Jason, but it quickly seeped out. 
</p>
<p>“That was only a few months before Bi and I were taken to the Lotus Hotel. One of the last things I saw of the real world.” 
“Nico… I’m so sorry, man,” Jason said. His stomach was churning with guilt. He had made Nico relive that day. He saw the same pain in Nico’s eyes that he had seen in Cupid’s palace, the same pain that he had never wanted to see again. 
</p>
<p>He had to fix it. 
	</p>
<p>“Things are so much better now. I’m sure if-”
	</p>
<p>“I don’t want to risk it.” Nico didn’t sound angry with Jason, just tired. “It’s not… It’s not worth it. And… Hazel’s from the same time period. I don’t… I can’t lose my sister again.” Nico’s voice cracked with emotion. 
	</p>
<p>Jason longed to put an arm around Nico to comfort him, but he didn’t want to overstep his boundaries any more than he already had. 
	</p>
<p>The silence rebounded around them again in the stables, filled only by the slight creaks of the ship as it sailed, and the crash of water against the hull. Still, it was muffled so far below deck. 
	</p>
<p>Nico turned his head slightly to look at Jason. “What do you want, anyways? Why are you still here?” 
	</p>
<p>Jason tried not to let the question sting. 
	</p>
<p>“I, uh… was just kind of wondering how you knew…?”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I'm so excited about this chapter! Sorry that it's so short</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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